“By the way,” as they neared the end of dinner, Su Ran suddenly seemed to remember something. He pulled out a small gift box from the side and handed it to Zhou Yanxing. “Merry Christmas Eve.”
“I forgot to prepare one for Secretary Chi,” Su Ran added apologetically.
Chi Zhan quickly waved it off. “It’s fine, really.”
Giving apples was a subtle way of confessing one’s feelings…
Chi Zhan suddenly recalled what his male colleague had told him.
“Thank you.” Zhou Yanxing gave the gift box a few glances before saying, “Then I’ll graciously accept. Merry Christmas Eve to you too. Our company’s having a team-building trip to a resort tomorrow—want to come along?”
Su Ran froze, then looked at him in disbelief.
“President Zhou, your company’s team-building… would it really be appropriate for me to go?”
“Why wouldn’t it be? I still owe you for your help during the business trip. You worked hard. But if you have other plans tomorrow, that’s fine too.”
“Of course I can go!” Su Ran could barely contain his excitement, his tone brimming with joy. “Then it’s a date—see you tomorrow!”
Just then, Chi Zhan’s NPC panel let out a soft ding—
[Side Quest Triggered]
Player Mission: Christmas Hot Spring Getaway
Support Objective: Get the romance target to attend the company holiday trip / Get the romance target to invite the player on vacation (Completed)
Support Rewards: Su Ran’s favorability + Company hot spring day pass + 1 Mystery Gacha Box (Pending Distribution)
Chi Zhan couldn’t help but laugh. Every single time he completed a support mission, it happened by complete coincidence—accidental, even.
The whole mission practically progressed itself thanks to Zhou Yanxing alone.
Su Ran clearly wanted some alone time with Zhou Yanxing, so Chi Zhan once again excused himself under the pretense of going to the restroom.
He headed straight to the front desk. Even though hardly anyone ever paid attention to the photo wall—just like those personal slogans in milk tea shops—Chi Zhan still politely requested the restaurant take down the photo of him and Cen Chi.
When the receptionist saw him, she froze for a second before lighting up with delight.
“Hey, you’re back! Just look at how good this photo turned out. You and your boyfriend are so photogenic! None of the other couples came out looking this dreamy…”
Chi Zhan started to speak. “He’s not—”
My boyfriend.
But before he could finish, a familiar voice spoke up behind him.
“What photo? Let me see too.”
Chi Zhan turned around. Zhou Yanxing was standing to the side, already eyeing the photo wall with interest.
“Not bad.” Zhou Yanxing studied the photo, muttering to himself, “Whoa, they even slapped on a beauty filter. Your restaurant’s post-service work is impressive.”
The receptionist beamed. “Right? We hired a professional photographer and did the full package—retouching, lighting, special effects. Guaranteed to make every guest look amazing~”
“……”
Zhou Yanxing continued, “Pretty good. What event was this? I don’t remember seeing it last time I was here.”
“It was our anniversary celebration. Complete a few tasks and you got 90% off your meal. But it’s already over now.”
Zhou Yanxing chatted casually with the receptionist, and when he turned on the charm, his charisma really did shine. But Chi Zhan just felt a headache coming on. Something about Zhou Yanxing right now felt… off.
Chi Zhan glanced back at the photo again.
He hadn’t looked too closely before, but the photographer really had captured an excellent angle. A beam of golden light arced right over their heads, like a radiant rainbow, lending the whole image a dreamy, ethereal feel.
Looking around, he noticed other couples’ photos on the wall too—many of them drinking from crossed arms, laughing, clearly enjoying themselves. Some were posing cutely, some wearing bunny ears, some embracing… In comparison, his and Cen Chi’s photo wasn’t particularly unique—just better composed and more aesthetically pleasing.
A moment later, the manager arrived.
“Good evening, sir. May I ask if you’d like your photo removed from the display?”
Chi Zhan nodded.
“The thing is, we only post photos after getting permission. We used your companion’s phone number for the consent, so he likely agreed. But if you’d prefer it taken down, we’ll give you the photo as a keepsake.”
“I didn’t mean—” Chi Zhan started.
But the manager had already taken it down and handed it to him.
Chi Zhan wanted nothing more than to destroy it on the spot, but with no good excuse, he accepted it with a forced smile.
After saying goodbye to the manager, he turned to Zhou Yanxing.
“President Zhou, why did you come out? Where’s President Su?”
Zhou Yanxing had already returned to his usual blank expression. He didn’t answer the question, just gave the photo in Chi Zhan’s hand a pointed look.
“Don’t tell me… your boyfriend is Cen Chi? Doctor clocked off early for the holiday?” he added sarcastically. “Did the patients agree to that?”
Ah, there he was—the familiar, sharp-tongued version of Zhou Yanxing. Oddly enough, it made Chi Zhan feel a bit more at ease.
“He’s not Doctor Cen.”
Zhou Yanxing let out a cold snort.
“Let’s go. Back to the office.”
“What about President Su?”
“Gone,” Zhou Yanxing said matter-of-factly. “Dinner’s over—why would he hang around waiting for you? I knew you’d sneak off again.”
“……”
President Zhou was being remarkably gracious today—shockingly even-tempered. Even after they got back to the office, Chi Zhan still couldn’t believe it was over just like that.
He really couldn’t figure Zhou Yanxing out anymore.
Or perhaps… the system was right. The romance target had a strong moral compass. He wouldn’t pursue someone who was already in a relationship. And now that he believed Chi Zhan had a boyfriend, he’d lost interest and decided to back off.
Chi Zhan suddenly found himself deeply admiring the system.
If that’s the case, now that Zhou Yanxing had seen the “boyfriend,” he wouldn’t need to keep paying X anymore.
And perhaps he could finally return to being friends with Song Guang.
Chi Zhan could tell—Song Guang liked him.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have forgiven Chi Zhan so easily after they’d reconnected, not after all those days of silence.
Chi Zhan still didn’t remember exactly what had happened between them. But if he put himself in Song Guang’s shoes—after dating someone online, only for that person to disappear without a word, then reappear six years later? Chi Zhan would’ve blocked that person instantly.
Yet Song Guang had been showing up online more often lately, always making time to do couple events with him. All just to fulfill the role of his “fake boyfriend.”
