Bian Yiqiu couldn’t recall exactly when he lost consciousness. He only remembered that the last time he came, dawn was already breaking. His body trembled violently as he sprawled against the massive floor-to-ceiling window in the master bedroom on the second floor, a stunning architectural feature that spanned an entire wall. Behind him, Ke Mingxuan pounded into him with unrelenting ferocity, driving him to the brink of life and death. The overwhelming pleasure shattered him, his screams tearing through the air as his climax erupted against the glass in thick, potent streaks.

And then… nothing. The once-dominant, untouchable Bian Yiqiu was, once again, fucked unconscious by the insatiable Ke Mingxuan.

In the blissful blackness of their shared slumber, neither stirred. Both were utterly drained, their bodies entwined beneath the covers, bare skin tangled together in disarray. They slept soundly, heedless of time, from the first light of dawn until darkness reclaimed the sky.

Bian Yiqiu had indulged himself completely, sleeping so soundly that he forgot all about his meeting with Ruan Chengjie. 

Meanwhile, President Ruan had been calling non-stop from morning to evening, hearing the dreaded “The number you dialed is unavailable” message a hundred and twenty times. By the end of the day, he had no choice but to accept that he’d been stood up. The text he had received the night before only fueled his frustration, and in a fit of rage, he threw his phone against the wall, shattering it into pieces.

Bian Yiqiu regained consciousness sometime after eight in the evening. As he opened his eyes, he saw the darkness around him and wondered why he had woken up so early, realizing it wasn’t even morning yet. He yawned and rolled over, planning to get more sleep, but then the scent of food wafted through the air. His stomach, empty all day, growled loudly, as if driven by some ghostly hunger.

Strange, he thought. He had eaten quite a lot at Xuyuan last night; how was he starving before dawn?

Boss Bian, hugging a blanket, wavered between eating and sleeping for ten minutes before resolutely getting out of bed. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he felt a dull ache at his rear, his entire body aching as if run over by a car, sore and uncomfortable.

His gaze fell upon the dried, suspicious white stains on the glass window, vivid reminders of their midnight battles and various positions, intense words, and passionate entanglement replaying in his mind.

He suddenly felt a bit dry in his mouth and throat, silently swallowing, then muttered a curse, only to be startled by the raspy sound of his voice, as if it had been scraped by sandpaper. However, his groggy mind slowly began to clear, and he finally became aware of the dark sky outside, which seemed unusually dark.

Could it be that it wasn’t dawn, but that it had gotten dark again?

He was stunned by this thought and hurriedly tried to check his phone to confirm the time. However, after turning the bedroom upside down, he couldn’t find any of his personal belongings. Even his underwear and socks, which had been carelessly tossed on the floor, had already been picked up and placed in the storage basket. His phone and watch were probably left in some corner downstairs again, just like last time.

Forget it.

Bian Yiqiu had always been laid-back about things that were beyond his control. If he couldn’t find something, he simply wouldn’t waste his time looking for it. Right now, his main priority was to eat; his hunger had reached the point where his vision was starting to blur, and his stomach felt like it was pressing against his spine.

He casually grabbed the bathrobe from the chair, draping it over his shoulders, and slipped into his slippers before lazily pulling open the bedroom door. The faint scent from earlier grew stronger, and he could hardly resist, his mouth watering in response.

The living room was brightly lit but empty, the warmth from the heating filling the air. Steaming dishes lined the dining table, their aroma, color, and presentation so inviting—it was obvious they were crafted by a Michelin-level chef from the hotel’s Chinese restaurant.

Bian Yiqiu rubbed his stomach as he headed downstairs. Though he knew that Ke Mingxuan had probably left a while ago, he still couldn’t resist glancing around, checking every direction. Only when he confirmed that Young Master Ke was nowhere in sight did he plop down onto a chair, ready to first indulge his hungry stomach.

“Hiss—damn it!” The sudden movement caused a sharp pain in his rear.

Just as Bian Yiqiu was gritting his teeth and cursing Young Master Ke, the person he was cursing suddenly walked in from outside.

“What are you doing?”

Bian Yiqiu was so startled by the voice that he almost jumped, his rear which had been slowly lowering back down onto the chair, now dropped heavily onto the hard wooden seat. The expression on his face instantly shifted from a grimace to one of pure agony.

“Ke, Ming, Xuan!” Damn it, are you doing this on purpose or what?!

Young Master Ke turned around, closed the door, and hung his coat on the coat rack by the entrance, moving as smoothly as if he were at home. Then, with a quick motion, he tossed something toward Bian Yiqiu.

Bian Yiqiu reflexively caught the object, took one look, and nearly lost his breath. Without thinking, he threw the tube of butt cream back at Ke Mingxuan’s face, making a loud thud as it hit the floor. He spat out a single word: “Get lost!”

Quick-witted, Ke Mingxuan grabbed the cream back in time. Not only did he not leave, but he walked over to the dining table, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

“Bian Yiqiu, I’ve been working all night, and I still haven’t eaten.”

Bian Yiqiu really wanted to say “Heh” with a “Blame me, huh?” But after thinking about it, considering that for once Ke Mingxuan didn’t just walk off and actually went so far as to help him order food and buy medicine, plus the fact that he was genuinely too hungry to argue, the two of them ended up having their first post-activity dinner in an unexpectedly harmonious way.

After finishing the meal, Bian Yiqiu said, “Can you leave now?”

Ke Mingxuan gave him a side-eye, leisurely rinsed his mouth with lemon water, then slowly picked up the neatly stacked napkins and wiped his mouth before finally speaking, as if he were some kind of emperor.

“Is Ruan Chengjie’s car key still in your hands?”

Bian Yiqiu hadn’t expected him to suddenly bring this up. His brain, just fully revived and still basking in the pleasure of being well-fed, hadn’t caught up yet. He blinked, then retorted irritably with a challenge: “None of your damn business,” and struck a dramatic pose, waiting to watch Young Master Ke lose his temper.

To be honest, Bian Yiqiu wasn’t usually one for this kind of petty amusement, but for some reason, whenever he saw Ke Mingxuan, he couldn’t help but want to clash with him. As long as it made Ke Mingxuan uncomfortable, he felt oddly satisfied.

Unfortunately, this time Bian Yiqiu was disappointed. Ke Mingxuan didn’t get angry or upset; instead, he looked at him with a serious and sincere expression, one Bian Yiqiu had never seen before.

“Bian Yiqiu, I’m not joking with you. I won’t allow you to take his car, and there’s a reason I don’t want you getting too close to him. I don’t care who you fuck or what you do with anyone, but not Ruan Chengjie. That’s not happening.”

At first, Bian Yiqiu was able to keep a smile on his face when he heard the first part, but by the time the second half of the sentence came, he couldn’t keep the smile from slipping.

If he still deluded himself into thinking that Ke Mingxuan was stopping him from getting close to Ruan Chengjie out of jealousy, then he would truly be the biggest idiot under the sky. If Ke Mingxuan had even the slightest sense of possessiveness toward him, he wouldn’t have said, “I don’t care who you fuck or what you do with anyone.”

Bian Yiqiu suddenly felt like the delicious meal he had just eaten had been seasoned wrong. Now, from his mouth to his throat and down to his stomach, everything churned uncomfortably, making him feel sick.

“What if I say no?” Bian Yiqiu coldly stared at him. “What if I do like him? What if I want to be with him?”

Ke Mingxuan stared at him for a long time, without saying a word.

Bian Yiqiu kept that expression, waiting to hear how he would respond.

The two of them silently locked in a standoff, and the atmosphere that had just slightly eased because of the meal instantly turned icy. In the end, Ke Mingxuan stood up, leaving behind a cold “Then do as you please,” and walked toward the door with no sign of irritation, as if he couldn’t care less.

Bian Yiqiu watched him take his coat from the coat rack, open the door, and a gust of cold wind rushed in, immediately sweeping away the warmth from the living room.

“Ke Mingxuan.”

Bian Yiqiu called out to him.

Ke Mingxuan stopped but didn’t turn around.

“This is the last time,” Bian Yiqiu thought to himself. “Don’t come looking for me again, I’m getting bored of playing with you.”

Ke Mingxuan lifted his foot and stepped out of the villa, slamming the heavy wooden door shut with a bang, cutting off the howling cold wind and his figure from view.

Bian Yiqiu listened to the sound of the car engine growing fainter, gradually disappearing. Only then did he grab the tube of ointment from the table and, with all his might, throw it.

The ointment hit the door with a dull thud, a sound that wasn’t too loud but still noticeable. The door seemed to hold onto the lingering tension from earlier, as if still echoing the heated atmosphere between them, making the room feel even more suffocating, with a sharp, sarcastic undertone hanging in the air.

“Ke Mingxuan, you jerk!”

Bian Yiqiu cursed, feeling some relief, before turning and heading upstairs. As he entered his bedroom and saw the disarray, he rubbed his forehead and quickly stepped back out. He went into the next, tidier room, threw himself onto the bed, and wrapped himself in the blanket to continue sleeping.

Three minutes later, Bian Yiqiu groaned as he crawled out of the warmth of his blanket, quickly ran downstairs in a huff to retrieve the ointment, and then climbed back into bed.

“Damn it, Ke Mingxuan, that jerk… how could he do that without any preparation? If it were someone more delicate, they’d have been in serious trouble.”

After applying the ointment, Bian Yiqiu finally relaxed enough to close his eyes. He had expected that, after hours of being awake and still burning with frustration from parting ways with Ke Mingxuan, he would have trouble sleeping. But the moment his head hit the pillow, he quickly drifted into a deep, almost unconscious sleep.

He woke up feeling completely refreshed, only to find a handsome face inches away from his, staring intently at him. He was so startled that he nearly tumbled off the bed, blanket and all.

Zuo Cheng quickly caught his boss, his lips pouting in a surprisingly helpless expression. “Boss.”

Bian Yiqiu, still shocked, took a moment to regain composure. “Act normal.”

Zuo Cheng immediately turned expressionless.

Bian Yiqiu asked, “How did you know I was here?”

Zuo Cheng replied, “The car has a GPS system.”

“…”

Bian Yiqiu felt like he must have been half-asleep, asking such a silly question. He quickly tried to put on a serious face, attempting to regain some of his usual authority. “Has anything happened these past two days?”

“There was a big issue.”

Bian Yiqiu furrowed his brows. “What happened?”

“The CEO of Jiu’an Group disappeared without a trace, and Director Ye almost called the police.”

Bian Yiqiu paused for a moment, then kicked out angrily. “What the hell, who taught you this?”

Zuo Cheng didn’t dodge, letting the kick land, and calmly replied, “He Xu, Ye Zhen, and Meng Jianyu are downstairs.”

“What are they here for?”

“They came to see if you’re still alive enough to write a will—those were He Xu’s words.” Zuo Cheng shamelessly sold out his teammate.

Bian Yiqiu grinned, grinding his teeth in amusement. Meanwhile, He Xu sneezed loudly downstairs.