Chapter 15: Wanting a Hug

Li Huan, taking advantage of his height and long legs, easily subdued Song Chunhui in his arms. Song Chunhui struggled violently like a madman, cursing him as a “beast” and kicking him repeatedly, landing several hard blows on his calves.

Li Huan tightened his grip, holding Song Chunhui firmly until he was out of breath and could no longer struggle. Only then did he speak, “Why are you so angry? You were so obedient last night.”

Song Chunhui’s mind was replaying terrifying close-up scenes, each frame so vivid and close. His breathing was rapid, as if he couldn’t believe the man in the video, so wild and panting, was himself.

His face, flushed with anger, suddenly turned pale, and his body trembled slightly. His hands, out of his control, clutched Li Huan’s collar tightly. “Beast…”

Realizing he had gone too far, Li Huan switched to holding Song Chunhui with one arm, quickly took out his phone to stop the video, and coaxed, “Alright, I’m a beast.”

The unbearable sounds of panting finally ceased.

As Song Chunhui came to his senses, he pushed Li Huan away with all his might, retreating as if avoiding a plague. He pinched his palm hard, forcing himself to calm down quickly.

Experiencing something firsthand and seeing it with your own eyes are two different things. He could deceive himself into thinking nothing had happened, turning the page on the pain, but the person in front of him was no ordinary beast.

He was a black-hearted pervert.

What normal person would film such things? And zoom in on the victim’s face and private parts, clearly intending to use it as leverage against him.

Everything had traces. Li Huan had pretended to be honest from the start, just to gain his trust and make him lower his guard. Last night was also a trap set by Li Huan. More than just a pervert, even a beast would have more shame than this despicable creature.

During this time of calming down alone, Song Chunhui even found some comfort in his misery. Although Li Huan was a beast, at least he didn’t mock him like the group he encountered in high school, calling him a hairless “chicken” and saying he peed like a child.

Why do people always like to hurt others?

“Xiao Li.” Song Chunhui took a deep breath, trying to maintain a calm demeanor as he negotiated with Li Huan, “Everything can be discussed. I know what you’re after.”

Li Huan raised an eyebrow at Song Chunhui, smiling, “You’re standing so far away, I can’t hear you.”

“…” Song Chunhui steadied his turbulent emotions, but seeing the pervert approaching him, he broke down in a second, raising his hand to sternly warn Li Huan, “Stay there and don’t come any closer! I’m trying to talk to you properly!”

“You can talk. I just heard your voice is hoarse and wanted to get you a bottle of water.” Li Huan acted all serious, fetching a bottle of mineral water from the minibar next to the TV for Song Chunhui.

Would any man lose his voice from that kind of thing? Song Chunhui was so embarrassed he wanted to find a crooked tree to hang himself.

He adjusted his glasses, his gaze behind the lenses sharp as a knife, directed at Li Huan, “Who are you pretending for? Listen, I know what you’re after.”

Seeing the comical defensive stance of the four-eyed guy, Li Huan got interested, like a child tasting sweetness for the first time, unable to resist the craving.

But using force all the time was boring. He wanted Song Chunhui to obediently open his legs on his own.

“I’m listening.” Li Huan unscrewed the bottle cap and took a leisurely sip of water.

Song Chunhui got straight to the point, “Bring your phone over and delete the video in front of me. When we get back to Ancheng, I’ll find a way to give you the manager position.”

Li Huan was slightly stunned, then burst into laughter, “Brother Song, you’re really interesting.”

“Stop with the grinning.” Song Chunhui kept a stern face, “Don’t you just want to be the business manager? Fine, I’ll make room for you.”

Li Huan slowly walked to the sofa and sat down, looking at Song Chunhui, who had retreated to the window, and asked, “Getting promoted to manager after just a week, isn’t that a bit much?”

It would be a miracle if it were okay. A creature worse than a beast should be sewing in a prison workshop.

Song Chunhui’s waist and legs were sore and tired, but he didn’t dare sit on either the sofa or the bed. He could only speed up his speech and continue quickly, “Director Wang’s big order will be credited to you. I’ll sign it as soon as possible. Doesn’t your family have connections? Spend a bit more money.”

“No.” Li Huan shook his head.

“…” Song Chunhui’s anger flared. Resigning for him was like pulling a thread that would unravel everything.

The next job was uncertain, and the mortgage of several thousand would have to come from his savings. Most importantly, he would have to find a new place to register his Jiangcheng household.

Having retreated this far, what more did he want?

“General Manager Liu wants results. I’ll put in a good word for you. Promotion won’t be a problem.” As Song Chunhui spoke, his hand unconsciously reached for his lower back, pressing on the sore spot with his fingertips.

Seeing this, Li Huan patted the spot next to him, signaling to Song Chunhui, “Come sit down. Isn’t it tiring to stand there?”

Hearing the “pat pat” sound, Song Chunhui recoiled as if electrocuted, straightening his back, which caused a tightness in his rear, making him exhale.

He clenched his jaw, gritting his teeth in defiance, “Don’t worry about where I stand. Delete the video quickly. Once the order is signed, I’ll resign, and the commission will all be yours.”

“No.” Li Huan still shook his head.

Being manipulated by a junior nearly a decade younger, Song Chunhui couldn’t swallow this humiliation any longer and exploded on the spot, “What do you want?! Huh? You think I won’t dare to sue you?!”

“Why such a big temper again? I haven’t finished talking.” Li Huan leaned back on the sofa, adding a sentence with feigned grievance, “Ding Lei will bully me.”

“…” Song Chunhui’s head throbbed with pain. Seeing Li Huan’s act made him hate, and the hate plunged him into agony, leading to continuous outbursts.

“You’re afraid of being bullied? Go tie up Ding Lei, mess with him, and make a video asking if he dares to bully you again. Who’s as perverted as you? If you have the guts, go tie up General Manager Liu too, and mess with him. The whole company will be yours!”

Li Huan chuckled, wanting to tell Song Chunhui that, let alone the branch office, if he wanted, the entire Nuolin Group could be his. Why bother with a couple of crooked melons?

“You still have the nerve to laugh?!” Song Chunhui was furious.

“Sorry, couldn’t help it.” Li Huan stopped laughing and explained seriously, “Ding Lei is too ugly, General Manager Liu is too old, neither is my type.”

“…” Is there anyone who can control this damned homosexual? Song Chunhui was so angry his chest hurt, his mind was a bit muddled, and he just felt exhausted.

Li Huan, with a smile in his eyes, looked at Song Chunhui and said, “Brother Song, I just find you pleasing to the eye.”

“Screw you!” Song Chunhui retreated warily, only realizing his nervous heartbeat when he bumped into the window glass. He was truly afraid of getting another bulge in his stomach.

“My uncle is so pitiful.” Li Huan sighed, “At his age, being cursed and screwed by you, if you’re angry, take it out on me, don’t bully the elderly.”

“…” As a fellow man, Song Chunhui was well aware of Li Huan’s filthy thoughts. Taking his manager position wasn’t enough; he also wanted to freeload his backdoor.

He thought again, why insist on saving face and suffering? If only he could completely let go of his pride.

A sudden knock on the door broke the tense atmosphere in the room.

After the waiter set up the meal and left, Li Huan waved to Song Chunhui, who was still hiding by the window, “Brother Song, come have some porridge. The bus leaves at three.”

Song Chunhui was indeed hungry and wouldn’t go against his own stomach, but it was hard to swallow in front of a pervert.

So he ordered Li Huan to retreat to the door. Only when Li Huan moved did he dare to approach the coffee table, taking his portion of nutritious porridge to the minibar by the TV, planning to talk after filling his stomach.

Li Huan, hands in pockets, leaned against the door, his gaze falling on Song Chunhui, who was huddled by the minibar.

Song Chunhui devoured the porridge, clearly starving, but even in hunger, he didn’t forget to glare at Li Huan from time to time, his eyes fierce, guarding against him tightly.

The five-star hotel was great everywhere, except the portions weren’t big. After finishing a bowl of porridge, Song Chunhui wasn’t full, savoring the taste when a voice sounded in his ear.

“Brother Song, the dessert and fruit are for you too.”

Startled, Song Chunhui quickly moved away and warned Li Huan, “Stay away from me, keep a distance of over three meters, if you come half a step closer, I’ll really sue you!”

“Am I a monster that eats people?” Li Huan placed the dessert and fruit platter on the minibar, then retreated to a safe distance, “We’ll talk after you eat.”

Since he was going to resign anyway, Song Chunhui decided to indulge, taking advantage of the company one last time. Nuolin owed him, deserved to lose such a diligent old employee, gold shines wherever it goes.

The fruit was sweet, something Song Chunhui usually couldn’t afford. As he ate, he kept an eye on Li Huan, and when he picked up his phone to check WeChat, he saw several unread messages.

Meng Sijun: [Where are you?]

Meng Sijun: [I didn’t mean anything by what I said earlier, just heard that doing business is tough, long hours, lots of socializing, I think you’re having a hard time (crying)]

Meng Sijun: [You don’t want to talk to me anymore]

Meng Sijun: [See you tonight (cute)]

It’s really not right to keep a girl waiting. Song Chunhui quickly explained that he was attending a company team-building event and couldn’t check messages in time, sending several playful emojis in response.

Meng Sijun: [I thought you didn’t want to talk to me anymore (pouting)]

Winter had already set in, and the temperature in Beicheng was even lower than in Ancheng.

Yet, Song Chunhui inexplicably smelled the scent of spring, a strong intuition rising in his heart that he was about to usher in the second spring of his life, perhaps for a lifetime.

He was just about to reply.

“Who is Meng Sijun?”

Startled by the voice, Song Chunhui fumbled, dropping his phone on the minibar and choking on a half-chewed grape, his face turning red as he coughed repeatedly.

Hearing the urgent and fierce coughing, Li Huan quickly helped Song Chunhui by patting his back, laughing as he did, “I’m not competing with you, why eat so fast?”

Once he caught his breath, Song Chunhui forcefully pushed Li Huan away, adjusted his glasses, and glared at him, not saying a word, just glaring as if trying to kill him with his eyes.

Seeing Song Chunhui cough until his eyes were red, his deep eyes hidden behind black-framed glasses, Li Huan’s mind wandered to the man without glasses last night, full of spring colors, eyes misty, lips red, never closed, calling out for him, panting and moaning all night, clinging to him until dawn, probably wanting a hug, a hug would make him obedient.

Li Huan spoke first, “Since you know what I’m after, I’ll be straightforward, I won’t delete the video.”

“…” Song Chunhui’s face changed dramatically, his voice hoarse as he questioned, “What exactly do you want? Isn’t the manager position enough for you? I’m warning you, I’m negotiating with you not because I’m afraid, but because you’re young and ignorant, and still have a chance to change.”

The familiar taste, still the same nagging four-eyed guy.

“Brother Song, how do I know you’re not making empty promises?” Li Huan smiled innocently, “If I delete it now, what if you go back on your word and fire me?”

“I’m not like you,” Song Chunhui retorted coldly, “full of lies, I don’t know how your mother raised you. I can swear to the heavens, if I don’t fulfill it, may I be struck by lightning and go to hell, never to reincarnate, do you have that resolve?”

Li Huan: “Not really, I’m not superstitious.”

Song Chunhui: “Screw you!”

“That’s settled then.” Li Huan turned to pack his backpack, then looked at Song Chunhui, “Oh, by the way, I didn’t just take one video, there’s about three hours? And lots of photos, including the ones from Friday night in the bathroom.”

Song Chunhui: “…”

Li Huan: “Maybe four hours, after all, it was a whole night.”

Song Chunhui: “…”

In a place where even birds don’t poop, finding a tool to vent was not easy, Li Huan couldn’t bear to let him go. The experience with Song Chunhui was unique, he hadn’t had enough, just watching the video made his blood boil, itchy and restless.

Seeing Song Chunhui’s stiff face, silent, Li Huan smiled and reminded him, “If you want me to delete it immediately, there’s another option, take responsibility for me.”

Song Chunhui wanted to kill someone.

Originally just pretending to be sick, now even without illness, the pervert had tormented him into illness. When Liu Wenjin showed concern, Song Chunhui was miserable, not even in the mood to flatter, and then he ran into people from headquarters, many of whom were familiar faces.

If it were yesterday, Song Chunhui would have at least greeted them, after all, he was a manager, not losing face.

However, the moment he decided to resign, these people had nothing to do with him, he wouldn’t have the chance to return to Nuolin, his supposedly glorious resume was a joke.

When he awkwardly boarded the bus, Song Chunhui didn’t know where to sit, there was no one to welcome him, just a bunch of people watching his joke.

*

Li Huan was temporarily held up by Secretary Han, who handed him an envelope, feeling like it was money, but not very thick, at most two or three thousand.

He was surprised, “What’s the meaning of giving me this now?”

Secretary Han: “This is a reward from Director Li for your good performance in the competition, hoping you continue to work hard.”

Li Huan readily accepted the money, and on his way to the bus, he received a WeChat from Ms. Lan, only then realizing the money was begged by his mom to buy a washing machine.

With four-eyed around, who needs a washing machine?

Thinking of the 800 yuan bonus taken by Song Chunhui, Li Huan quickened his pace, and after boarding the bus, he went straight to the empty seat next to Song Chunhui, quietly stuffing the envelope into his hand.

Unable to avoid it, Song Chunhui closed his eyes, pretending to sleep. Not long after, his arm was nudged, he opened his eyes, and in front of him was Li Huan’s phone, with two lines of small text on the screen.