An hour earlier.
Everyone was a little tipsy, and Dai Yixin, who was at the center of the crowd, smiled as he answered a question from someone nearby. Then, without betraying any emotion, his gaze drifted over to the young man curled up on the sofa in the corner.
It was a greedy, possessive, and destructive glance.
He lowered his gaze, took a sip of his drink, and recalled that rainy day when the young man curled up in his arms, quietly sobbing. In that moment, Dai Yixin was willing to give anything—he wanted to kneel in front of the boy and lick away all his tears.
Once consumed, the boy would be his.
Someone nearby noticed Dai Yixin’s odd expression and asked, “Dai Yuan, is something wrong?”
In just a few hours, these people had grown comfortable enough to call him by name.
Dai Yixin lifted his eyelashes, his eyes filled with feigned sorrow. “I suddenly thought of my father. A few days ago, I got a call from the hospital—my father’s condition has worsened.” He rubbed his temples, looking apologetic. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have mentioned this.”
Naturally, those around him began offering words of comfort.
Meanwhile, Dai Yixin recalled the last time he had seen his father.
A merciless slap landed across his face.
“You ungrateful wretch! Just because my legs are injured, you think I can’t deal with you anymore?” Dai Yixin’s father was panting in fury, his face a deep shade of purple. However, the one who was struck remained calm, turning his head back slowly.
“Why are you so angry, Father?” Dai Yixin straightened his back, his imposing height making his father, who was seated in a wheelchair, seem even smaller. His father bit his lip, glaring at him as Dai Yixin casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with a handkerchief and tossed it to the floor.
He couldn’t comprehend how his eldest son had grown so fast. Standing in front of him now, Dai Yixin’s shadow loomed, nearly engulfing him.
The amber eyes, inherited from his mother, showed no emotion as they locked onto him, even colder due to the backlight. He stared at his father as if he were a lifeless object. “Father, you should be proud of me. I’m finally capable of taking good care of you, as a son should.”
Father Dai’s face twisted with anger. He roared at him to kneel, like he used to, so he could beat him with a belt until he was bruised and bloody, then throw him into the empty, bedless room in the basement.
But Dai Yixin responded with a laugh.
Slowly, a smile crept across his face as he stepped aside. For some reason, his father’s wheelchair began to slide forward on its own. Ahead was a steep slope, at the bottom of which lay a newly-dug artificial lake.
Panic seized his father, who frantically tried to stop the wheelchair, but it was out of his control. His legs were crippled and numb, making it impossible to stand. The wheelchair gained speed, the wind in his ears growing louder. At the bottom of the hill, the artificial lake loomed like a monstrous beast, its eerie eyes fixated on him, ready to swallow him whole.
“Dai Yixin! Dai Yixin! Stop this wheelchair!” His father screamed his son’s name desperately, but no one responded. As the lake drew nearer, survival instincts kicked in, and he threw himself from the wheelchair with all the strength he could muster.
There was a dull thud as he hit the ground, his face paling with the pain. The wheelchair, however, continued on its path, stopping just before reaching the lake.
Seeing this, his father instantly realized his son’s true intentions. Furious, he turned his head, only to see Dai Yixin wearing an expression of concern.
Dai Yixin hadn’t moved an inch.
With a sigh, he said, “Father, you really worry me. It seems that it’s best for you to stay here. Don’t you agree?”
He made the decision for him—there was no need for his father’s consent.
The filial son was willing to spend a lot of money to keep his father in the best, most secure nursing home, a truly noble act.
***
Dai Yixin glanced over at Gong Lang, who was clearly distracted, his gaze repeatedly drifting in one direction. Witnessing this, Dai Yixin’s eyes darkened, but when he turned back, his face was filled with concern. He handed Gong Lang a drink. “What are you thinking about?”
Gong Lang forced a smile. “Just thinking about work.”
“You don’t need to worry about work. Didn’t I tell you? I can help you.” Dai Yixin, playing the role of a thoughtful friend, clinked his glass against Gong Lang’s. “Let’s not think about those stressful things tonight. We’re here to relax.”
Gong Lang nodded and downed his drink. After that, he lost track of how much he drank, eventually getting so intoxicated that he could no longer locate Huo Youqing, nor could he find Dai Yixin.
He collapsed onto the couch, barely managing to mumble two words from the depths of his throat—
“Youyou.”
Meanwhile, someone else was calling out for Youyou.
But this person was inside a room.
Feeling hot, Huo Youqing instinctively clung to something cold when it came into contact with him. But after holding onto it for a short while, he let go. Whatever it was, it was too clingy—possessive, even aggressive.
He felt fingers pressing hard against his jawline and cheek, forcing him to tilt his head back, fully exposing his vulnerable neck to the other person’s gaze.
Huo Youqing once read about a species of arctic wolf in a book. Their fur was considered beautiful by human standards, but beneath their striking appearance lay a savage nature. When pursuing prey, these wolves exhibited both incredible patience and explosive power.
Sharp canine teeth bit down on the snow-white neck, causing a slight tremble, just like prey shaking under the predator’s teeth.
Huo Youqing felt weak, unable even to open his eyes. The pain made him gasp and tremble, yet there was no sign of mercy.
The prolonged pain eventually brought tears to his eyes. However, because of these tears, his entire face was licked over. The wolf showed no disgust, eagerly licking away the tears from his face. As if unsatisfied, the tongue paused at his upper eyelid, forcefully circling and licking, trying to coax more tears to flow.
“No…” Huo Youqing finally made a sound, struggling to turn his face away, his eyelashes already drenched. But he was truly drunk, not only physically but also emotionally, losing control of his heart.
Later, he heard the other person say, “Stick out your tongue.”
And he… he actually obeyed.
—
When Huo Youqing opened his eyes, his first reaction was confusion. He didn’t know where he was. The room was dim, with the curtains drawn, and the alarm clock on the bedside table showed it was 7 a.m.
His second reaction was pain. He couldn’t understand why he was in so much pain. The excessive drinking from the previous night had left his brain sluggish and his memory fragmented.
It was five minutes after waking before he noticed the bare arm draped across his chest. Staring at the unfamiliar, evidently masculine hand for several seconds, he stiffened and turned his head. What greeted him was not a sleeping face but someone who had been awake for who knows how long.
The person holding him so intimately had a pair of beautiful amber eyes, which now stared unblinkingly at him, the pupils only moving in response to Huo Youqing’s actions, as if nothing else could interest them.
Huo Youqing’s eyes fluttered in disbelief, wishing it were just a dream. But as he became more awake, the memories dulled by alcohol started flooding back.
In an instant, shame, humiliation, and hatred overwhelmed him, his breathing quickened, and his face turned ashen.
The person holding him took in the entire scene, showing no fear. Instead, they drew closer, gently brushing their lips against his in an intimate gesture, like lovers in a mundane world.
“Do you want to make that call?” Dai Yixin picked up the phone from the bedside table. The glaring three digits on the screen flashed before Huo Youqing’s eyes, and Dai Yixin’s voice was soft as he kindly offered, “If you call now, it’s perfect—there’s still evidence inside your body.”
Those few words pushed Huo Youqing’s anger to the extreme. Furious, no, hysterical, he shoved Dai Yixin away and grabbed the lamp from the bedside table.
A loud crash echoed.
Huo Youqing glanced at the lamp in his hand. The sight of blood on the broken lamp startled him for a moment, and then he quickly let go, letting it fall onto the bed.
His face turned pale, his lips trembling violently, while the other person in the room chuckled softly.
Dai Yixin casually wiped the blood from the wound on his neck and then nonchalantly licked his fingers clean. As he did, he stared at Huo Youqing like a predator watching its prey.
Not wanting to stay in the room a moment longer, Huo Youqing tried to stand but collapsed weakly onto the floor as soon as his foot touched the ground. His expression was one of utter defeat, his clenched fingers turning white with the effort.
A pair of feet entered his vision, and looking up, he saw Dai Yixin, wiping his neck with a cloth, seemingly unconcerned about the injury.
Without a care for his wound, Dai Yixin bent down to pick up Huo Youqing. After being harshly pushed away, he paused for a moment and then suddenly bit down on Huo Youqing’s already swollen lips. The sharp pain intensified as his lips, already bruised, were further assaulted.
But Dai Yixin didn’t care, controlling Huo Youqing by the bed and holding him in his arms. The sweet scent of saliva filled the air as Dai Yixin deepened the kiss, seemingly intent on consuming every drop of saliva from Huo Youqing’s mouth.
Huo Youqing was so furious that he struggled to breathe, a flush of red covering his pale face. Finally, he found an opportunity and bit down hard, the taste of blood spreading instantly. Dai Yixin froze for three seconds before retaliating even more fiercely.
Huo Youqing had never experienced anything like this—being kissed to the point of tears. He felt utterly humiliated, yet he couldn’t stop the tears from falling. His remaining pride wouldn’t allow him to beg for mercy, but just when he thought he might die from this kiss, Dai Yixin finally let him go.
Satisfied with the sight before him, Dai Yixin pulled the pitiful yet adorable youth into his arms, gently patting his back to calm him down. But his words were anything but comforting—
“Listen, the person next door is awake. Can you guess who it is?”
Huo Youqing didn’t want to guess, but he couldn’t block out the sounds drifting in from outside. He heard a clear voice, finally realizing that the balcony door hadn’t been closed, and the person on the phone in the neighboring room could be heard clearly.
“…Yes, I’m heading back now…”
It was Gong Lang’s voice.
Dai Yixin laughed softly and kissed Huo Youqing’s earlobe. “You can make that call, or ask the person outside for help, it’s all up to you.”
