The day before they had agreed to visit, An Xun was still dawdling in bed just before departure.

He hadn’t slept until past eleven the previous night. Despite several reminders from his home’s ‘principal,’ he continued his bold defiance of household rules, which resulted in his phone being confiscated. He protested for nearly an hour before he finally gave up trying to retrieve it and went to sleep honestly.

Bo Xiangzhou had called out to him once when he woke up. After freshening up and turning back to check on him, he found An Xun had rolled over and was fast asleep again.

He pinched An Xun’s nose, and when he couldn’t breathe, he woke up abruptly, bleary-eyed, “Can I sleep for three more minutes?”

“No.” Bo Xiangzhou knew his habits well; it wouldn’t just be three minutes, but likely three hours.

Under the threatening gaze of his alpha, An Xun yielded and sat up on the bed in a daze. Bo Xiangzhou didn’t disturb his morning routine and chose a suitable outfit for him, even preparing his toothpaste, everything ready, just waiting for him to snap out of his drowsiness and hurry out.

When the daze stretched too long, An Xun ended up flopping back down, his legs still curled up.

Bo Xiangzhou helped him sit up again, “Told you to sleep early, would I ever harm you?”

“That sounds familiar…” An Xun muttered, bewildered, “You’ve deprived me of my nightlife, isn’t that harming me?”

“If I let you continue, people might mistake me for having married a panda,” Bo Xiangzhou quipped, twisting open a bottle of coconut milk he had brought from downstairs.

An Xun didn’t take it, drinking in the manner it was offered instead, “You wish. Even if your net worth doubled, you couldn’t marry a panda.”

The coconut milk was room temperature, not as sharp as coffee or cold water for waking up, but it was a decent method nonetheless.

Bo Xiangzhou fed him a few sips, asking, “Still sleepy? Can you wake up now?”

After he finished, he added with a smile, “Today’s events are important, you can’t just drift along like a drowned fish in the sea, you need to splash around a bit. Right, Drowned Fish?”

Damn it, what was he saying? An Xun heard his own online handle!

Embarrassment surged within him, his face turning red as if blood-filled, and it took him a long time to accept this reality, eventually yelling, “President Bo, you might as well scold me!”

“I’m not your boss, how could I just scold you? Besides, even if I were your boss, I don’t have the right to insult my employees, only to be stern when they make mistakes,” Bo Xiangzhou replied lazily. “I’ve said what I needed to, so, Drowned Fish, aren’t you getting up?”

Drowned Fish, my ass!

An Xun was on the verge of a breakdown, “President Bo! Don’t you know you can’t use someone’s online handle in real life?!”

“I know now, Drowned Fish.”

“Ah—”

His shout grew louder, and Bo Xiangzhou covered An Xun’s flushed cheeks, “Alright, no more, get up, or we’ll be late.”

“Let’s be late! Just buy a drowned fish and take it as a substitute for me!” An Xun tried to bite him, “You like to shout, don’t you? Just kill me with your yelling!”

Bo Xiangzhou coaxed him a few sentences, barely stabilizing his emotions. In the car, An Xun sat in the passenger seat in silence. He wasn’t used to having a driver, so when traveling, it was usually Bo Xiangzhou who drove.

An Xun had thought about getting a driving license when he was eighteen but then thought he wouldn’t have the money to buy a car, so the idea was postponed.

Now that he had money, he no longer thought about buying a car or getting a license. Driving himself was too tiring; he had several free laborers at his disposal, one of whom had a particularly notable status. The chance to command a VIP was rare and should be cherished.

A couple of grilled sausages were pushed into his hand, and An Xun turned his gaze back, biting into a corn crispy sausage, “President Bo, if you personally stepped out to buy grilled sausages as an apology and it got out online, would you still want your image?”

“It’s not like it’s something shameful.” Bo Xiangzhou’s voice was languid, “Still mad?”

“Mad, so can you go down and buy me another one?” An Xun swallowed half the sausage in one go.

Bo Xiangzhou slowed down the car, driving leisurely, “No, eating too much isn’t good.”

An Xun grumbled, “All day long, all you know is to lecture me.”

“If I don’t keep you in check, you’d be soaring to the heavens.”

An Xun felt uneasy, his disguise was at risk, “President Bo, I feel like you have a deep misunderstanding of me.”

“What misunderstanding?”

An Xun thought it was time to salvage his image; recently, he indeed got carried away, almost forgetting his own surname.

An Xun, “I’m really well-behaved, none of that monkey business you’re talking about.”

Bo Xiangzhou’s voice softened, “Then please, the very well-behaved you, go to sleep on time tonight.”

“I’ll try my best.” An Xun pulled out the old trick his boss often used on him.

‘Drowned Fish’ as a handle was definitely out; he genuinely feared that if he wasn’t behaved at night, Bo Xiangzhou might shout the handle and completely scare away any sleepiness.

Lacking inspiration and unable to think of a cool yet non-embarrassing handle to shout in real life, after some online searching, he changed it to “Heard Only Fools Would Call My Name.”

After changing it, An Xun remarked to himself, what a long name.

The Shen family and the estate were in opposite directions, and it took quite some time to get there. Shen Qingrang and Father Bo had already arrived before them and were now helping out.

The Shen family was considered a scholarly family. Shen Qingrang had elevated the Shen family’s status several notches with her business acumen even before marrying Father Bo. After their marriage, the Shen family’s enterprises flourished even more under her leadership, propelling them into the upper echelons of the economic society.

However, she didn’t let love interfere with her career. Instead, she handed part of the business to her elder brother’s son and focused on nurturing the Shen family’s heir.

Father Bo often expressed dissatisfaction, always wanting to lure Shen Qingrang to the Bo company. But according to Bo Xiangzhou, every time Father Bo showed this desire, he ended up sitting on the cold bench for another day.

An Xun took this to heart; he would learn from Shen Qingrang. If Bo Xiangzhou made him mad, he would deliberately distance himself, letting him experience what loneliness tasted like. Perhaps, after tasting enough loneliness and recalling the warmth of holding him, he would suddenly come to his senses.

Bo Xiangzhou unbuckled his seatbelt, and An Xun jumped at his sudden movement.

“What are you thinking about?” Bo Xiangzhou’s voice was soothing, calming his startled heart, “I called you two or three times, you didn’t hear. We’ve arrived, get out.”

An Xun took the keys.

Without saying, he knew handling the keys was his task; there was always a second time after the first.

He was curious, do suits not have pockets?

He clung to Bo Xiangzhou’s arm before entering, leaning his whole body on his arm as if walking by himself, but in reality, being pulled along by Bo Xiangzhou’s strength.

An Xun made sure the keys were securely in the pocket, stretched his fingers, and touched Bo Xiangzhou’s high-end suit, lingering intentionally when he reached the pocket, which Bo Xiangzhou didn’t stop, undoubtedly boosting his courage.

Fabric draped over the pocket opening, he lifted the fabric, his hand sliding a few centimeters away, bending over to pry at the pocket, Bo Xiangzhou thought the posture unseemly and pulled him up.

“Why aren’t your pockets open?” An Xun, unconvinced, tried a few times, confirming it wasn’t just that the pockets were too tight.

Bo Xiangzhou pulled away An Xun’s exploring hand, “Unnecessary, have you seen any businessman stuffing their pockets until they bulge?”

An Xun, “…” So, his pockets must be bulging?

Silently, An Xun was resigned; just stuff it then.

Bo Xiangzhou, guessing from his expression what he was thinking, avoided his earlobe and gently tugged at his ear, half-embracing him as they entered the living room.

Although the Shen family’s villa was smaller, the decor was meticulous, imbued with a classical charm.

No one was in the living room, and as a guest, it wasn’t proper for him to wander around, so he followed Bo Xiangzhou and sat on the sofa to wait for the host to come down.

The main host was busy in the study showing off his new paintings and had no time to come down, so he sent a younger host.

A young man in a black shirt pushed up his rimless glasses and descended the stairs with a pure English copy of “The Call of the Wild” in hand, moving slowly and elegantly like a noble prince from medieval Europe.

As An Xun clearly saw his face, he almost twitched at the corner of his mouth and blurted out, “…Purple Hair?”

The young man, “!” Damn, an acquaintance!

The young man’s pupils shrank, and he froze mid-step, resulting in a century-long stare-off with the two who had just met yesterday.

“You know him?” Bo Xiangzhou glanced between them.

An Xun, honestly, “Don’t know him.”

The moment he said “Purple Hair,” An Xun regretted it; he was bound to pay for his quick mouth someday.

An Xun clung to Bo Xiangzhou, half hiding behind him, gesturing stealthily with one hand behind his back.

The young man couldn’t understand, but he read the threat in his eyes.

An Xun’s words were something Bo Xiangzhou would only half-believe; the atmosphere was so odd it was clear they knew each other, just unclear whether it was for good or ill.

Bo Xiangzhou pretended not to see their eye signals, introducing, “This is Uncle’s youngest son—Shen Yuchuan, who went to a training camp a few days before the wedding because of a competition.”

“Nice to meet you, Shen Yuchuan.” An Xun churned these three words between his lips, sounding like a fishing boat, the name was too mature.

Shen Yuchuan couldn’t face his cousin; he still remembered the person beside his cousin was very close to an alpha yesterday.

Shen Yuchuan grimaced, “Hello, cous… in-law.”

The last word was gritted out.

Bo Xiangzhou gave An Xun a way out, “If I heard right, did you just call him something? Purple Hair? You know each other?”

Feeling like he had been caught meeting an online friend by his husband, An Xun said, “Don’t know him, called Purple Hair because I have a dog son online called Purple Hair who looks just like him with glasses on.”

Shen Yuchuan chuckled, “Cousin-in-law really knows how to flatter.”

An Xun returned a smile.

He hadn’t expected this young man to actually be a family member.

Caught between the two, Bo Xiangzhou asked only ordinary things, and Shen Yuchuan answered every word, sitting properly, his hair dyed black. If An Xun didn’t know what he was like privately, he too would be fooled by his good student appearance.

He had underestimated him; back in the luxury store, when this young man looked disdainfully at Bo Xiangzhou, he should have known, he wasn’t just some fool from a landlord’s family.

Just two words, regret!

He had spoken too many brash words!

An Xun’s expressions were varied, Bo Xiangzhou stopped the conversation and asked, “What are you thinking about?”

“Thinking of you.” An Xun was absent-minded, moving to Bo Xiangzhou’s other side, continuing to lean on him as he wandered the universe in his mind.

Bo Xiangzhou straightened the corner of his lifted shirt, “Always lying.”

Shen Qing is a renowned painter in the country, a single painting worth millions; he loved art more than business. After introducing his paintings to Shen Qingrang and Father Bo, still not done, he called Bo Xiangzhou upstairs.

Bo Xiangzhou wanted to bring An Xun along, but seeing his lack of interest and fearing it would make his head hurt and affect his health, he took the opportunity to give the two desperate men some space to communicate.

The housekeepers were busy in the kitchen, and the living room quieted down. Shen Yuchuan dropped his good student facade, “You’re actually my cousin-in-law!”

“You don’t look at me like that, I also want to know why I’m your cousin-in-law!” An Xun laughed angrily, “Your great uncle!”

Shen Yuchuan defended his cousin’s dignity, “Who was that alpha yesterday?”

With age comes boldness; he was an alpha, and An Xun wasn’t afraid of him, “Are you blind? That wasn’t an alpha, that was an omega! You’re an alpha acting like you don’t even recognize your own kind? If you don’t believe me, draw his face down and show your cousin, he’ll definitely recognize at once that he’s my omega brother.”

“What are you blabbering about?!”

“What can I say if I’m not blabbering? Should I go up to someone and tell them right to their face, your cousin is my husband? Isn’t that crazy?” An Xun turned the tables, “And you, underage dating and dyeing your hair purple without telling your family!”

An Xun noticed a crucial question, “Right, how has your dad not noticed you dyed your hair if you’re home every day?”

“Because I usually live near the school in a student apartment, rarely come home, and when I do, I wear a hat. This messy dye job was because my boyfriend hated it and made me dye it back.” Shen Yuchuan negotiated, “Uncle told me, my cousin-in-law is more timid than a mouse, physically weak, easily cries in situations, and told me to keep my pet snake away so as not to scare you. I see you don’t seem easily frightened; seems like you’re pretending, I’m pretending, so let’s not expose each other.”

An Xun appreciated his smarts, “Then let’s pretend we’ve never met. I don’t know about your early dating, and you don’t know I badmouth people outside. We’ll keep each other’s secrets, but if I find you’ve broken the agreement, I’ll arrange to meet your boyfriend at school.”

Holding onto a crucial point, Shen Yuchuan said, “You’re tough, but I have a request, can I let my pet snake out for some air?”

“No, I’m afraid of snakes, what if it bites me? How will you compensate?”

“It doesn’t bite.”

“You discuss it with your cousin; if he agrees to let it out, I have no objections.”

“Cousin-in-law, I misjudged you.”