The stairs in the KTV were actually quite dim since the elevator was out of order.
Qi Jing had been about to head downstairs after him, but before he could take a single step, the man beside him swept him up into his arms.
The voice-activated lights had malfunctioned too. Their private room was on the third floor. All in all, the place looked dazzling from the outside, but its internal wiring was hopelessly outdated.
The only sounds were the soft rustle of clothing and the intermingling of shallow breaths.
Qi Jing was actually quite obedient most of the time. His body responded on instinct, his arms immediately wrapping around Bo Chengyan’s shoulders and back.
His chin settled on the other’s shoulder.
Without a stray thought in his mind.
【One less hug each time.】
Bo Chengyan held him steady with one arm and descended the stairs with a frown. “What did you say?”
“I didn’t say anything…”
Bo Chengyan pursed his lips slightly. He occasionally forgot about that too. With a soft tsk, he said, “I must have misheard.”
But after hearing those words, the young man in his arms felt a chill creep over him, his nape growing hot from the pinch. He hugged Bo Chengyan even tighter without thinking.
After all, one of the classic openings to a ghost story was: “Did you hear that sound?”
It was around ten-thirty.
The real ghost arrived just then. As 996 tried to drift in through the car window, the driver rolled it up at the perfect moment.
Its body was squished clean in half.
Qi Jing panicked and caught the falling piece. The Blue Slime from the other end forcibly melted back into it.
【I’m fine.】
996 proved vigorous as ever and informed him they could communicate with thoughts.
The youth tried it curiously. 【Can you hear me?】
【Of course.】
996 wriggled its body, resembling a giant lima bean as it tried to project an air of professionalism.
【So only you can hear? It won’t be overheard by anyone else, right?】 Qi Jing asked earnestly.
996 waved grandly. 【Impossible! That would be a bug. My domain is perfectly stable!】
In the car, Bo Chengyan glanced lightly at the young man beside him. At eighteen, Qi Jing kept his face slightly lowered, silent.
He seemed unhappy.
“I’m not mad at you.”
The youth looked up in alarm. “Ah… I…”
Qi Jing felt a gentle touch at his hair tips and nuzzled the man’s fingers out of habit. He froze a second later.
996 narrowed its eyes, chattering on to itself. 【Ruan Heng should appear in about a week. Have you saved up enough money yet?】【This is when Bo Chengyan dismisses his goldfinch.】【Your storyline ends there.】
~~~
From May to July, the temperatures rose steadily as summer drew nearer.
Qi Jing’s exam scores were something of a superhuman feat—over six hundred points. He was still cautious when filling out his college applications.
Seeing him like that, Bo Chengyan brought in an expert to help. It took less than two hours to wrap up.
His grueling student life was over.
More precisely, his pursuit of university admission was.
Qi Jing spent those days in a mix of nerves and anxiety. Bo Chengyan had gotten him a debit card loaded with a million.
Holding it felt both scorching and terrifying.
But later, as 996 munched on chips atop the desk, it explained solemnly. 【Goldfinches are supposed to take the money. Accept it, accept it.】【Did you forget the study materials I showed you?】
Yes, the cardinal rule for a goldfinch was to never develop real feelings for the benefactor.
Qi Jing clutched the bank card and suddenly saw the light. The corners of his lips quirked up slightly.
Having money was great!
The youth spun in a circle around the room.
But while the weather was clear on his end, storm clouds gathered elsewhere.
Two quarrelsome middle-aged folks had barged into Bo Chengyan’s office. Their skin was sallow, their clothes ragged. They plopped right down on the sofa without a care.
They demanded justice at every turn.
The Chief Assistant efficiently summoned a translator.
“He says this is their only son, and they have to take him back no matter what.”
Bo Chengyan had never felt such irritation. His expression darkened ominously. In a cold voice, he said, “Ask who sent them here.”
The pair refused to say, insisting they’d get their child back or go online to rally the media.
Just then, the man uttered something barely intelligible, but his tone was unmistakably hostile.
“What did he say?”
The translator hesitated, eyelids twitching. He stammered, “Uh, dirty words. Nothing worth repeating.”
“Tell me.”
“I’ve heard it all. You’ve been keeping my son as your boy toy. You’ve ruined him so bad he couldn’t even find a wife back home.”
Dead silence fell.
About five minutes passed.
Lin Se was urgently called upstairs. The scene that greeted him was Bo Chengyan leaning against the sofa arm, facing the pair pinned down by security.
The man’s face was swollen on one side, two teeth knocked out, soiling the sofa.
Blood dripped steadily.
“Oh, God.”
The young man approached in shock, staring. “Bo, this is a civilized society.”
“This is—”
Bo Chengyan kept his head slightly lowered, twisting his wrist. His brows lifted faintly, lending him a wild, untamed edge.
Lin Se sometimes recalled what Bo Chengyan had done at the Bo Family…
He drew in a sharp breath.
A madman.
Lin Se turned to tend to the middle-aged man’s injuries. The man tried to bark again, but security clamped down on his shoulder.
At least the bleeding stopped.
Humanity demanded that much.
“It’s just… I saw that story in the news recently. People actually track folks down by scent?” After getting the rundown from the Chief Assistant, Lin Se stared at the couple on the sofa, utterly baffled.
No need to mince words, really.
They were just after money.
“Who sent you?” Lin Se asked curiously.
The two still wouldn’t answer, ranting only about the lack of justice.
What a mess.
Security hauled them away soon enough.
With few people left in the office, Bo Chengyan’s private phone rang moments later. He answered without shying from Lin Se.
“I swear upfront, it wasn’t me.”
Chen Zhuo stood on the balcony tending to his plants, dead serious. “Don’t believe me? Check my location. I’m still stuck at the Old Estate getting nagged about marriage—thanks to you.”
A lazy drawl came through the phone.
“I might stir up trouble now and then, but I’d never target your little one.”
Worthless drivel.
Bo Chengyan hung up, expression calm. His right knuckles were red—the force needed to knock out two teeth was no small thing.
The Chief Assistant asked gingerly, “Should I handle it, boss?”
Lin Se waved him off, hands in the pockets of his white coat. “Leave him be. Go do your work.”
Once everyone was gone,
Lin Se said flatly, “Pain at this level just feels good to you, doesn’t it?”
People with thresholds that high were all deviants.
~~~
Qi Jing had no idea his “parents” had shown up. He was just packing his things in his bedroom,
opting for the cheaper clothes as much as possible.
Truth be told, he couldn’t really tell the difference anyway.
996 was eating jelly on the desk, but without fingers evolved yet, it floated in front of Qi Jing and offered it, nudging him to open it.
Apple-flavored.
“Can you even taste it?”
In the scorching summer heat, the youth wore shorts and sat cross-legged on the carpet. He carefully tore open the film and squeezed some jelly into its mouth.
It felt a bit odd, since this “system’s” physical form was a transparent slime that already resembled jelly.
Jelly eating jelly.
996 shivered. 【I can’t taste it, but it gives me a tingly sensation. Very, very pleasant.】
Qi Jing frowned slightly. It almost sounded like some phenomenon from a modern history book.
“…”
“You should eat less.”
The youth packed away his snack box. The admission results would be out in a few days. He hadn’t had a fever since the exam.
It really had been stress-induced.
He felt like such a bother sometimes.
His slender fingers rummaged through the jewelry box of the Soul-Soothing Jewelry Set. Half-asleep at night, Qi Jing would sometimes lift his eyelids to see Bo Chengyan dozing in the chair beside him, holding his hand.
Lost in thought.
“Hiss.”
Qi Jing shook his hand and grabbed a tissue to press against his fingertip—the brooch had pricked him.
Somewhat annoyed, he still went to the large box nearby, filled with all sorts of beautiful accessories.
Qi Jing had no intention of taking those.
They might be expensive.
His everyday clothes were simple, without tags, probably worthless.
He’d just take his own stuff.
After sticking on a bandage, Qi Jing decided to keep packing. That’s when a knock came at the bedroom door.
“Little Jing, want some watermelon juice?”
Qi Jing was struggling to close his suitcase lid, stuffed full of clothes. 996 tried to help by perching on his shoulder for extra weight.
It whispered, 【I want some too!】
“Sure thing, Auntie! Coming right now.”
After finally latching the suitcase, Qi Jing trotted to the door. “Thanks, Auntie… Huh?”
His tone dipped gradually, trailing off into confusion.
Bo Chengyan seemed fresh from the office, still in his shirt—he’d just shed the jacket. The custom white button-up fit him perfectly.
Qi Jing often had to look up at him. Despite measuring one-seventy-seven last time,
how much taller was he…?
“You won’t let me in?”
Qi Jing paused for a moment, then quickly stepped aside and took the watermelon juice from Bo Chengyan’s hand.
It was refreshingly sweet.
He took several sips right there, leaving more than half in the glass.
996 floated over, whining softly.
Qi Jing set the glass down on the desk—right behind Bo Chengyan. The man gripped his elbow, as if suddenly remembering something, and asked, “Did you weigh yourself?”
The constant-temperature air conditioning hummed quietly, filling the room with stillness.
For some reason, Qi Jing felt that Bo Chengyan was acting strange today. He tilted his head unconsciously.
“What are you thinking about?”
Bo Chengyan hadn’t released his elbow.
He leaned lightly against the desk, his shoulder casting a shadow that nearly covered Qi Jing’s face. His gaze was direct and unwavering.
“Tell me.”
Qi Jing was pulled forward a step, his pupils reflecting the man’s handsome features. He blinked in surprise. “Just now? I… I was wondering… if you’re upset?”
The freshly squeezed watermelon juice carried a faint, sweet fragrance.
996 had plunged its entire body into the glass and was wriggling around, on the verge of falling off.
Qi Jing caught sight of it in his peripheral vision and panicked. He leaned over hastily to steady the glass.
It looked like he was throwing himself into Bo Chengyan’s arms.
Bo Chengyan instinctively wrapped an arm around the young man’s waist. He frowned, wanting to glance back, but Qi Jing was already saying, “It’s fine, it’s fine. I was just afraid the glass would fall.”
The atmosphere shifted into something subtly intimate.
It was as if striking someone for the first time had cracked the man’s ironclad self-control of more than a decade.
His biological parents?
Who said that?
They’d died long ago.
A gloomy mood seeped in bit by bit.
Bo Chengyan didn’t let go. He lowered his head slightly, gazing at the person in his arms, and asked in confusion, “Little Jing, haven’t you hugged me lately?”
Qi Jing didn’t know why, but his heart was racing. He felt the man’s voice resonating right by his ear, and his wrist was still held in that firm grip.
“You haven’t been calling me Mr. Bo, either.”
It plucked at his heartstrings—
Qi Jing started to lean in for a hug, but Bo Chengyan pinched the back of his neck and lifted his head. Frowning at the suitcase, he asked in bewilderment, “Auntie told me you’re packing. What for?”
His tone was perfectly calm.
Qi Jing instinctively tried to pull away, but his wrist was held fast, keeping him rooted in place.
“Ah… this…”
How was he supposed to explain? The admission notice hadn’t arrived yet, but 996 had said Ruan Heng would come online within a week.
It would be a one-night stand.
And then he’d be thrown out.
Qi Jing bit his lip. He’d half-decided to tell the truth—that he wouldn’t be living here anymore—but when he met those darkening eyes, he felt like a lamb sensing primal danger.
“To go to university… don’t you have to… live in the dorms?”
His words stumbled awkwardly.
Bo Chengyan seemed to accept the answer. The tension eased in an instant. He idly pinched the protruding bone of Qi Jing’s wrist. “Oh, that… It’s fine. You don’t need to live in a dorm.”
