By the time they had finished discussing the partnership details in the meeting room, it was nearly dinnertime. Originally, dinner and post-dinner entertainment had been arranged, but now the partner representative was Dai Yixin.
Huo Youqing’s gaze flickered over to him. Dai Yixin was listening to his team speak, the soft light of the setting sun streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a warm yellow glow on his profile. His long lashes were tinted gold, and beneath that…
Their eyes suddenly met.
Without changing his expression, Huo Youqing smoothly extended the dinner invitation.
Dai Yixin accepted the invitation without hesitation.
How strange.
He had never imagined a day when he and Dai Yixin would be sitting at the same table in such a formal capacity. They had shared many meals together in the past, but most of the time, it had been just the two of them, with him often forced to sit on Dai Yixin’s lap while they ate.
It was as if, in Dai Yixin’s mind, he was an infant who couldn’t care for himself and needed to be spoon-fed. Of course, elders feeding a child didn’t typically involve fingers or tongues occasionally entering the mouth.
Now, they were business partners. They were in a client-provider relationship. The table was filled with toasts and business exchanges, where though the conversation steered away from profit, every word was implicitly tied to money.
“Excuse me, I need to use the restroom,” Huo Youqing said, setting down his alcohol glass and grabbing his jacket as he stood up. He wasn’t actually going to the restroom; he just wanted to find a smoking area.
Seated in a spacious chair, he lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and stared blankly at the distant nightscape. Not far from where he sat was a high bridge. A stream of cars, headlights on, formed a glowing river of light that flowed steadily across the bridge.
“When did you start smoking?”
The sudden voice startled Huo Youqing.
He turned and saw a face both familiar and foreign. After about three seconds, he looked away again. “A few years ago, didn’t you know?”
Specifically, it was three years ago, during his senior year of college. At the time, he hadn’t yet decided on his future, and his family had told him they would respect whatever choice he made, whether or not he joined the family business.
He was so conflicted back then, and he had discovered that smoking gave him temporary peace, so he picked up the habit. In the end, he decided to join the family business, partly because of the fear left over from his last experience.
He hated the feeling of being powerless, like a fish on a chopping board, and despised being treated like a pampered pet locked in a gilded cage.
In the twenty-seven-year-old timeline, he had tried finding a job with Dai Yixin’s permission, only to later discover that all the positions were under Dai Yixin’s control. No matter how well he performed, no one would give him trouble, even if the whole company worked overtime—it had nothing to do with him.
When he realized this, it felt like a slap in the face.
What he had thought was self-reliance was merely the man’s charity.
Footsteps approached.
“When I went for treatment, I had all the people around you pulled away,” Dai Yixin said after a pause. “Is smoking that enjoyable?”
For some reason, Huo Youqing found this statement amusing. He turned his head slightly and crooked his finger. This gesture was blatantly disrespectful, especially toward someone as important as Dai Yixin, as though he was teasing a dog.
But the other man, the powerful business partner, bent down compliantly, bringing his pale face closer.
And then, a puff of smoke was blown into his face.
Huo Youqing exhaled a puff of smoke in Dai Yixin’s direction, watching as the latter closed his eyes momentarily, irritated by the smoke. Huo Youqing raised his eyebrows and gave a final verdict, “Not good.”
Dai Yixin reopened his eyes. Despite the smoke, he didn’t retreat, his amber eyes calmly gazing at the person in front of him. His lashes fluttered slightly, resting on Huo Youqing’s unusually bright red lips.
It was probably because of the alcohol that Huo Youqing’s cheeks had a faint blush, and his lips appeared moist. He seemed oblivious to the gaze of the person beside him, elegantly holding a cigarette between his long fingers, occasionally bringing it to his lips, lightly biting it, with a subtle touch of his lips.
Feeling such a heated gaze, he looked up and noticed the unmistakable affection in Dai Yixin’s eyes, making him suddenly want to laugh. He must be drunk because he reached out and rubbed Dai Yixin’s reddened earlobe. “I thought six years of treatment should have cured you. Why are you like this again when you see me?”
Like what, exactly?
Neither of them said it, but they both understood.
Dai Yixin’s gaze flickered for a moment, as if embarrassed, but only for a moment. He quickly refocused his eyes on Huo Youqing, though his ears were now completely red, as was his neck.
In the quiet, Huo Youqing could hear the sound of a heartbeat again.
His hand slid down, landing on Dai Yixin’s chest.
Through the skin and ribs, there was a heart beating strongly inside.
He moved the cigarette to his right hand, but this time, instead of bringing it to his own lips, he offered it to Dai Yixin. Knowing the other didn’t smoke, he still deliberately asked him to take a puff, much like a bad student trying to corrupt a good one back in school.
Dai Yixin glanced at him and was about to take the cigarette.
But just before his lips touched it, Huo Youqing suddenly pulled the cigarette away. The bad student’s prank succeeded, and he smirked slightly, dimples faintly visible on his flushed cheeks.
Dai Yixin pursed his lips slightly, the corners of his eyes drooping, looking utterly pitiful.
Seeing this, Huo Youqing tilted his head, grabbed Dai Yixin’s tie, and pulled him closer, so close their lips almost touched. As if curious, he extended his tongue and gave a light lick, immediately getting his shoulder grabbed in response.
The kiss was awkward and clumsy, full of reckless impulsiveness. Huo Youqing’s teeth were knocked against, making him wince and take a sharp breath. He had no choice but to take the lead and guide the novice. At some point, the cigarette fell to the floor, their fingers interlaced, tightly fitting together like their embrace. And, well, so did their tongues…
Even though Huo Youqing had been the one to initiate, he was the first to back down. Dai Yixin’s lung capacity made him feel like the man didn’t need to breathe. His tongue went numb, and his lips tingled all the way to his scalp. There, in the smoking area, Huo Youqing was kissed into a daze by the “good student,” who acted like a starving dog finally getting a taste of meat. When Dai Yixin leaned in for more, Huo Youqing dodged, letting the kiss land on his cheek instead.
“Enough, enough,” he said, catching his breath. At some point, Dai Yixin’s tie had ended up completely in Huo Youqing’s hands, crumpled beyond saving. The material wasn’t the type that could be washed or ironed—essentially ruined.
Well, maybe not entirely useless.
Deliberately, Huo Youqing grabbed the tie and rubbed it hard against Dai Yixin’s lips, wiping away any lingering moisture before stuffing it back into his pocket like handing out a tip. “We’ve seen each other, kissed each other. After this collaboration, don’t bother me again.”
Dai Yixin didn’t say a word in response. He simply took out a piece of candy, unwrapped it, and offered it to Huo Youqing.
For some reason, Huo Youqing took the candy.
His lips were kissed again—a light touch this time.
The man in front of him straightened up, undid the top button of his shirt as if feeling warm, and leisurely walked away.
Huo Youqing froze for a moment, the sweetness spreading in his mouth. Absentmindedly, he played with the candy for a while before picking up the fallen cigarette and tossing it into the ashtray. After washing his hands and returning to the room, the man who had almost devoured him earlier was now sitting upright and proper again. Only the unbuttoned shirt remained, exposing a patch of pale skin.
Huo Youqing glanced at him, finding it an eyesore, and turned his face away. There was a karaoke session after dinner, but he excused himself, saying he was too drunk. What he didn’t expect was that Dai Yixin agreed to go.
The surprise wasn’t just from Huo Youqing’s side—Dai Yixin’s employees were equally shocked, unable to believe their boss would take part in such a casual activity.
