Chapter 41

Lin Yushu had a dream he shouldn’t have had.

In his dream, he got to touch Song Qiming’s chest, and the sensation was just as good as he had imagined. He wouldn’t admit it, but ever since he started following Song Qiming’s Instagram, he had been harboring desires. He never expected that one day he would have his wish fulfilled.

Oh, and he also happened to touch Song Qiming’s abs, which were even more defined than he had imagined.

As Song Qiming moved back and forth, sweat gradually formed tiny beads on his abs, constantly tensing and relaxing.

Wait a minute…

What was Song Qiming doing? Why were his abs moving like that?

Lin Yushu abruptly opened his eyes and stared straight at the ceiling.

Before any thoughts returned to his mind, his sore muscles woke up, aching all over his body. It felt as if his limbs had climbed over a high mountain, and even moving a finger required effort. His skin felt sticky and uncomfortable, thoroughly drenched in sweat.

The most noticeable sensation was below his waist. With even the slightest movement, his thighs throbbed in inexplicable pain, as if they had been spread apart to an unprecedented extent.

A certain sensitive part was also hurting in a strange way. The burning sensation felt as though it had been rubbed all night long.

Fragments of memories slowly resurfaced from his slumber, and romantic scenes kept flashing through Lin Yushu’s mind. He suddenly realized that he seemed to have indeed climbed a mountain, and not just once but repeatedly reached its peak…

It must have been a dream. Definitely a dream.

Lin Yushu clung to the last shred of hope and looked to the side, only to see Song Qiming lying next to him. The blanket covered only his hips, revealing the scratches on his back and the curves of his waist and hips hidden beneath the sheets.

Snap! The hope shattered.

Lin Yushu forced himself to calm down, trembling as he took several deep breaths.

He had surpassed the age of being flustered by such situations. Even though this morning’s circumstances had hit him like an asteroid colliding with the Earth, he had to stay calm and figure out how to handle it.

It’s alright, he reassured himself. Song Qiming hadn’t woken up yet, so there was still room to maneuver.

He didn’t want to accidentally confirm his relationship with Song Qiming. Now it seemed that the best course of action was to pretend not to remember anything.

After all, as long as he stubbornly denied it, what could Song Qiming do?

The ability to act clueless, honed in the business world, unexpectedly came in handy in a situation like this.

Once he had a plan in mind, the panic subsided completely.

He left the pajamas on the bedside table, saving himself the trouble of searching for clothes. Enduring the soreness throughout his body, Lin Yushu silently put on his clothes, but as soon as his feet touched the ground, his knees gave out, and he collapsed to the floor with a loud thud.

“Mmm…” Song Qiming, still in bed, turned over and murmured in displeasure at being disturbed.

Lin Yushu’s heart jumped to his throat. He could already imagine Song Qiming sitting up, seeing him in such a disheveled state, and mocking him for trying to escape.

But the expected commotion didn’t happen. Within a few seconds, Song Qiming’s breathing gradually returned to calm, and he fell back asleep.

That was close.

Lin Yushu let out a sigh of relief, supporting his waist as he climbed up from the floor and, taking three steps forward and pausing, five steps forward and resting, made his way to the bathroom.

The person in the mirror looked incredibly exhausted, with disheveled hair resembling a dog’s nest and bloodshot eyes filled with dark circles.

Something caught his attention at the collar of his pajamas, peeking through faintly. Lin Yushu unbuttoned and pulled it open, only to discover that his body was covered in love bites, not even sparing the two cherry-like marks…

“What the hell, this German guy,” Lin Yushu frowned, complaining dissatisfiedly.

Bits and pieces of details started to surface. He couldn’t remember if it was before or after, but Song Qiming had kissed every corner of his body. He never knew his skin could be so sensitive, as just a kiss could leave him bewildered and infatuated.

He turned around to examine his back in the mirror, and indeed, there were many marks there too.

The red marks on his buttocks were particularly prominent, and Lin Yushu twisted his body uncomfortably, carefully inspecting them. They turned out to be finger marks.

How hard did he have to squeeze to leave such marks?

Damn it.

He had calculated everything for so long, but what was he thinking at that moment? Not only did he fail to balance the books, but he also gave away even more.

It seemed he couldn’t drink alcohol like he did last night anymore. It lowered his IQ, and that wasn’t a good thing.

Turning on the shower, water droplets fell evenly and delicately from the ceiling-mounted outlet, the sound of water easing Lin Yushu’s frustration.

Since the deed had already been done, he could only face it.

He believed that Song Qiming was a reasonable person. After all, last night, he had tried to maintain a gentlemanly demeanor and had only responded when Lin Yushu initiated it, not letting him go.

As he thought about his own behavior last night, Lin Yushu started to feel regretful again.

He quickly dismissed those images, pretending they never happened.
Lin Yushu sighed and turned his attention back to removing his clothes. As he waited for the water to heat up, he couldn’t help but think that perhaps the unexpected events of last night weren’t caused by alcohol, but rather his recent promotion.

People shouldn’t let success get to their heads.

The last time he let success get to his head, he won first place in an investment competition and confidently confessed his feelings to Du Yufei, only to receive the biggest blow of his life.

And now, it seemed that he had let success get to his head again. He thought he was young and promising, with a bright future ahead of him, and it was time to experience the joys of adulthood.

But what was the result?

Before he even received a confession, he ended up tying himself up and delivering himself to Song Qiming.

It was truly a situation that made people shake their heads in disbelief.

Suddenly, the bathroom door was pushed open from the outside, startling Lin Yushu. He turned around, his body tense, and saw Song Qiming walking in naked.

Song Qiming walked straight to Lin Yushu, wrapped his arm around his waist, and planted a morning kiss on his forehead, his voice filled with a lazy fatigue. “Baby, why didn’t you wake me up?”

Lin Yushu’s eyes widened in shock. “???”

“What did you just call me?” he asked.

“Baby,” Song Qiming replied, testing the water temperature with his hand. He held onto Lin Yushu’s waist and was about to step inside. “The temperature is fine.”

“Wait!” Lin Yushu hurriedly grabbed Song Qiming’s arm, stopping him from going in. He asked in confusion, “Why am I your baby all of a sudden?”

“Isn’t that what you are?” Song Qiming asked, puzzled. “My parents call each other that.”

Perhaps influenced by English usage, what sounded cheesy to Lin Yushu was just ordinary to Song Qiming.

But that wasn’t the main point.

“Song Qiming,” Lin Yushu turned off the shower, grabbed a towel, and temporarily wrapped his lower body, deciding to have a serious talk with Song Qiming. “I don’t remember anything from last night, and I hope you don’t misunderstand.”

Song Qiming’s tired eyes instantly cleared up, and he raised an eyebrow. With a faintly gathering low pressure between his brows, he said, “Misunderstand what?”

Lin Yushu was dealing with this kind of situation for the first time too, and he didn’t know how far to take the conversation or how to explain it clearly. He could only speak as seriously as possible. “In any case, what happened last night means nothing to me, and it won’t change our relationship. Please don’t casually call me baby.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Yushu regretted it a bit. The word “please” seemed to be overused, and it didn’t mean that they were so distant from each other.

However, Song Qiming didn’t seem to mind that point. Instead, he asked, “So, did you really not remember anything from last night, or does it mean nothing to you?”

Oh no, he found a loophole.

Lin Yushu had already said that he didn’t remember anything and emphasized that it meant nothing. Didn’t that imply that he remembered it?

He pursed his lips, concealing his guilty conscience, and said, “I don’t remember.”

“Okay.” Song Qiming’s expression remained indifferent as he turned on the tap and then forcefully pulled Lin Yushu into the shower. “Then let me help you remember.”

After the residual hot water ran out, the water from the showerhead turned cold. Lin Yushu’s towel slipped from his waist, and the cold water cascaded over his body, causing him to shiver involuntarily.

“Song Qiming! Mmm…”

His protests were blocked, and Lin Yushu suddenly realized that Song Qiming was punishing him.

Punishing him for pretending not to remember anything, punishing him for trying to regress their relationship.

However, it was Song Qiming who ended up getting drenched by more cold water. It was as if he wanted to extinguish his anger and keep himself calm.

The water gradually warmed up, and Lin Yushu’s body grew hot under Song Qiming’s kisses.

All the memories from last night came flooding back, and he knew he couldn’t resist anymore. All he could do was struggle weakly. “Don’t… we still have to go to work…”

Song Qiming’s eyes showed no mercy as he only moved his lips slightly and succinctly replied, “Take the day off.”

By the time they finished, it was already past 9:30 AM.

Lin Yushu lay on the bed, completely exhausted. His bones felt like they were falling apart.

If he had known that he would end up like this, he would have just accepted it when he woke up. There was no need to suffer through this new round of torment.

What was he thinking at first?

—As long as he stubbornly denied it, Song Qiming wouldn’t be able to do anything to him.

Now it seemed that he had overestimated Song Qiming’s level of civility. Who would have thought he would resort to physical means if he couldn’t win an argument?

Lin Yushu also didn’t expect that the consequence of stubbornly denying everything would be getting ravished until he thought it was enough.

Such a miscalculation.

Song Qiming was still kissing Lin Yushu’s back as if he wanted to leave a permanent mark on his trophy.

Lin Yushu was too tired to care about Song Qiming anymore. He glanced at the things on the bedside table and asked weakly, “When did you buy the condoms?” There was also a bottle of something that smelled like lime.

“It was delivered by the property manager,” Song Qiming replied with an inexplicable expression. “Should I have gone out by myself with a stick in my hand to buy them?”

Lin Yushu: “…”

Forget it, he was tired and didn’t want to argue anymore.

Lin Yushu tried to prop himself up and said, “Alright, let’s get ready and go to work.”

Just as he finished speaking, the sound of his phone vibrating suddenly filled the room. Lin Yushu looked around and, in the end, it was Song Qiming who picked up his coat from the bed and handed him the phone.

“Shao Guangjie?” Song Qiming glanced at the caller ID on the screen and raised an eyebrow with surprise.

Lin Yushu suddenly felt a little uneasy. If Shao Guangjie was calling his phone, it meant that he had already called the office landline and discovered that Lin Yushu hadn’t come to work.

He signaled for Song Qiming to keep quiet and then pressed the answer button. “President Shao.”

“Manager Lin,” Shao Guangjie still hadn’t changed his way of addressing him, “did you not come to work today?”

Saying that he was stuck in traffic wouldn’t be realistic since he was already more than half an hour late. No matter how bad the traffic was, he should have arrived at the company by now.

Lin Yushu decided to tell the truth. “I had a dinner gathering with my colleagues from Jia Ban last night, and I accidentally had too much to drink. I’m not feeling well this morning, so I’ll be a bit late to the office.”

The boss would certainly understand about the dinner gathering; he just concealed the true reason behind not feeling well.

His tone was open and honest, with nothing to feel guilty about. But at that moment, a certain mischievous wolf suddenly acted up, brushing his lips against the back of Lin Yushu’s neck, causing his breath to falter for a moment.

Luckily, it wasn’t too noticeable.

“Is that so?” Shao Guangjie inexplicably slowed down his speech, asking with hidden meaning, “Did Song Qiming also not come to work today? Did he also attend the dinner gathering?”

“No.” Lin Yushu couldn’t help feeling a bit guilty. He forced himself to ignore Song Qiming’s increasingly audacious actions. “The dinner gathering was only with my colleagues from Jia Ban.”

Shao Guangjie continued to ask, “Do you know where Song Qiming is?”

—He’s doing naughty things with me.

Lin Yushu managed to maintain his breathing, but he was afraid of giving himself away. The sound of his heartbeat was louder than a drum.

He turned his head around, glaring warningly at Song Qiming, and then told Shao Guangjie, “I’m not familiar with Mr. Song, so I’m not sure.”

“Alright then.” Shao Guangjie must have realized that he couldn’t get any useful information. He sounded a little disappointed and said, “Keep an eye on the time and come to the office. We have an important meeting this afternoon.”

“Alright, President Shao.” Lin Yushu hung up the phone in a calm tone, then turned around and shouted behind him, “Song Qiming!”

The person who had been sticking to him like a piece of candy immediately backed away.

“I’m going to take Wowo for a walk,” Song Qiming put on his clothes. “It must be eager to go out.”