Chapter 28 Part 2

Even with all his grievances, Zhong Nian wouldn’t badmouth the Boss’s people to his face.

So, he gave a neutral two words: “Not bad.”

Unlike before, the man didn’t move to the next topic. His expression serious, he looked at Zhong Nian and said, “I want to hear the truth.”

Zhong Nian smiled. “That is the truth.”

“…” The man fell silent, his gaze dropping to the floor, as if deep in thought.

Zhong Nian grew uneasy, fidgeting like he was on pins and needles, wanting to suggest leaving.

“Um…”

“So, you’re choosing both of them?”

The man’s sudden words stunned Zhong Nian.

“What do you mean, both?”

The man lowered his head, clasping his hands and rubbing his palms.

His voice was somewhat strained. “They’re both pursuing you, aren’t they?”

Zhong Nian couldn’t help but huff at his wording. “Not really.”

They were just teasing him, stringing him along. How was that pursuit?

“You don’t like them?”

The question clearly pointed to romance. Zhong Nian shook his head honestly.

“Got it.” The man stood. “Go back and rest.”

Zhong Nian felt amnesty granted and left without hesitation, taking the dirty clothes with him.

Though inexplicably dragged into this “Q&A,” Zhong Nian was happy to skip cleaning tables in the Casino and head to the lower decks.

With time before the lunch shift, he decided to wash the clothes in the dormitory to avoid stains setting in by evening.

The ship had a Laundry Room, and the man’s clothes weren’t fancy fabric. Zhong Nian planned to scrub the millet porridge stain roughly and toss the pants in the washer.

He wasn’t hand-washing; every bit of laziness counted.

The man wouldn’t know anyway.

Zhong Nian chuckled sneakily, tossed the pants into the sink, scrubbed twice, and found something in the pocket.

He pulled it out and froze.

…

“Boss, where’d you take the guy? Why hasn’t he come back?”

In the Casino, the Youth, wolfing down his food, called out as soon as the Black-Clothed Man returned.

Charles, who hadn’t touched much of his meal nearby, also looked up, waiting for the man to speak.

The man glanced at Charles, sat down, then turned to the Youth. “You’re very concerned about him.”

“Just asking…” The Youth scratched his hair. “Did you toss him in the sea or lock him up? Took so long, and now your clothes smell all perfumey after changing…”

“He’s gone back,” the man said.

The Youth looked disappointed. “Oh, just let him go like that.”

He sighed and cleared his plate.

Charles heard everything clearly. His jaw tightened then relaxed. He picked up his chopsticks to eat properly, but accidentally met the man’s gaze across the table.

His grip on the chopsticks tightened slightly, though his face remained calm. “What’s up?”

The man reined in the darkness in his eyes. “He told me he doesn’t like you, nor Second Brother.”

“…”

Charles paused, silent for a moment, then let out a dry laugh. “Is that so.”

“Tell Second Brother too. He…” The man said, his idle hand habitually reaching into his pocket, but finding nothing. His unfinished words halted.

A flash of bewilderment crossed his face, then he frowned. “Something came up.”

He dropped the line hastily and left quickly.

The others watched him, clicking their tongues in wonder.

Youth: “What could make Boss panic like that… Something happen on the ship?”

Charles said nothing, set down his chopsticks, and left despite the Youth’s calls behind him.

He stood before the elevator, watching the numbers drop to the lower decks, confirming his suspicion.

He knew exactly who the man was going to find.

A restless irritation clogged his chest, unbearably uncomfortable.

Charles didn’t want to suffer alone.

He decided to deliver the Boss’s words to Zhan Lu right away—as “good news.”

–

When the room door was pushed open, Zhong Nian had just returned from tossing the clothes into the public washer in the Laundry Room.

Before he could sit, he heard the door slam against the wall with a “bang.” Turning, he saw the man who’d left and returned standing in the doorway, his demeanor unusually intense. Startled, he jumped.

“Y-You… why’d you come back…” Zhong Nian’s voice trembled faintly, guilty after dumping the clothes in the machine.

“Forgot something.” The man strode up to him, steadying his uneven emotions. “Where are the clothes?”

Zhong Nian’s guilt intensified, his long lashes fluttering nonstop. His little brain raced as he equivocated, “I took them to wash, hung them to dry in a sunny spot.”

If the man really went looking… he’d say they were stolen or blown away.

“Washed them already?”

“Yeah.” Having thought of an excuse, Zhong Nian calmed quickly, nodding without a blush or skip in his heartbeat.

But the man didn’t go look. Instead, he asked, “Did you find anything in them?”

“Something? Nope.” Zhong Nian blinked. “Was it important?”

The man stared at him. Zhong Nian held his expression steady, meeting the gaze without flinching.

The faint blue in the youth’s eyes resembled the night sea and starry sky, drawing people in irresistibly, willing to drown…

After a long while, the man snapped out of it like waking from a dream. He lost the staring contest first, breaking eye contact. His averted head and turned body showed a hint of flustered awkwardness.

His lips moved, words on the tip of his tongue but held back. Finally, in a hoarse voice, he said, “Never mind. I’m leaving.”

Zhong Nian said, “I’ll bring the clothes to you tonight.”

The man acknowledged and left with hurried steps, lacking his usual steadiness.

After he was gone, Zhong Nian closed the dormitory door, returned to the sink, and picked up the Black Bow Tie left on top.

The brief scrubbing had made it damp.