“Wow. Hey, who is that?”
“Is he new?”
Inside the bustling bar, the moment Mo Yu walked past, an outgoing girl suddenly grabbed a waiter who was heading over to deliver drinks.
“We want that handsome guy who just walked by to come over and have a drink with us,” she said, bursting into giggles with her girlfriends right after.
numerical The young waiter froze for a second before realizing who she was talking about. This wasn’t the first time that person had been hit on.
“I’m so sorry, but he’s not one of our employees.”
“How can that be? I just saw him go into the staff area!”
“Because he’s our boss’s friend.”
The waiter scratched his head. “He comes over to sleep sometimes.”
“Huh? Comes to a bar to sleep?”
“Yeah, he said he actually can’t fall asleep in places that are too quiet. That’s what he says, anyway. Though our boss’s version is that he has a crush on him, which is why he’s always hanging around.”
“?”
The young waiter cleared his throat, then struck a pose. “So, beautiful, how about considering me instead?”
“Pass.”
“Waaaah!” The waiter walked away heartbroken.
On the other side, Mo Yu turned the doorknob to the breakroom.
Fu Li happened to be there, sitting on a chair knitting a sweater. It was his personal hobby.
“Why do you look like you’ve been bullied?” Fu Li asked.
He had a slender build and long hair. He would smile before he even spoke, smelled delicious from the tips of his hair down to his toes, wore gender neutral clothes, and even had his nails styled.
Anyone who saw him would have their gaydar ringing like crazy.
Yet Fu Li was completely straight, he just possessed an exceptionally eccentric, princess like girly heart.
“I told you long ago, if writing makes you unhappy, just quit. Come learn bartending from me, and I’ll introduce you to some rich older women!”
Mo Yu found it amusing. “As if you’d be willing to part with rich older women for me.”
“Can’t be helped. They don’t like me, they only like you.”
“…The only ones who like me are gay men.”
Speaking of this, his gaze instantly turned extremely resentful.
“Wait a minute, why are you coming over to my place so late?” Fu Li took a deep breath. “Don’t tell me you’ve finally realized that you’re in love with me.”
“Sigh, my damn fatal charm. Out with it. Confess to me, I can take it. I know being loved by gay men is my inescapable fate.”
Mo Yu: ?
Word had it that when Fu Li was younger, several of his close guy friends suddenly turned out to be gay and confessed to him, leaving the poor guy with lifelong PTSD.
So much so that back in college, the very first sentence he ever said to Mo Yu was. “I’m afraid that one day, you’ll fall in love with me.”
Only now, five or six years later, especially after two or three handsome, cool older women he actually fancied confessed to Mo Yu instead. Fu Li was so exasperated that his worry had seemingly morphed into impatience. He was constantly urging Mo Yu to just confess already.
Mo Yu was somewhat amused. “I’m a bit sleepy and don’t want to go home, so I’m going to lie down for a while.”
“Fine, then keep nursing your unrequited love.” Fu Li pointed at the bed, gesturing for him to make himself at home.
This breakroom was originally meant for staff who occasionally needed to stay overnight, containing only a small bed. However, nobody ever used it.
Because it was right next to the main bar area, lying here meant you could still clearly hear the noises from the venue, not just music, but singing and chatter too. The lights in the room were also kept on constantly.
Fu Li didn’t rest here either. Somehow, over time, it had turned into a Mo Yu trap room.
He was the only one who enjoyed this kind of sleeping environment.
Fu Li glanced back.
Mo Yu was lying hazy eyed on the bed, his face turned to the side, his work badge still hanging around his neck. One long leg and a fair skinned arm dangled off the edge. He was already drifting off within seconds.
Fu Li raised an eyebrow. “So tired lately?”
“Hmm?” Mo Yu’s brain was reacting a bit slowly. “It’s fine. Just need to write some stuff……”
Silence settled over the room once more.
Mo Yu opened his eyes again. “Let me ask you something. If, for some unavoidable reason, you had to do something… relatively intimate with someone you dislike…”
Fu Li dropped his knitting wool instantly.
“Huh?? Sexual harassment??”
“Maybe not dislike per se?” Mo Yu was a bit unsure about President Gu’s actual stance. “But definitely not close…and not liked either. Plus, the form of intimacy isn’t something you enjoy.”
Fu Li’s eyes widened like copper bells.
Another gay man?!
“But the intimate act is something that has to be done, so…so how do you keep him from getting angry at you?”
“I didn’t expect such a tragic thing to happen to you as well.”
“Ah?”
“Don’t worry, I’m very experienced with this!”
Mo Yu was stunned. “You’re experienced?” Could it be…
“Yes!” Fu Li grabbed his hand. “Which gay man has set his sights on you? Tell me everything! Who is he? What’s his status? How is he forcing you! What do you mean ‘has to be done’ is there no law and order left? He picked a fight with the wrong person by picking on my friend. I’ll definitely help you deal with him.”
Mo Yu: ?
“No, no, there’s no gay man!”
“How is that possible? Gay men are everywhere! And forcing you, could it be your boss?!” Fu Li’s expression was exaggerated.
Mo Yu pressed a hand to his forehead. What was he originally trying to ask again??
Forget it. He was sleepy anyway. Mo Yu pulled the blanket over his face and gave up on thinking.
“I beg you, pretend I said nothing.”
Lately, Editor in Chief Wu had run into a bit of a predicament.
Even though he had voluntarily offered to take charge of the script for Qiming, he hadn’t needed to craft a story from scratch himself in a very long time.
While he had refined taste when it came to appreciating works and plenty of experience guiding other writers, often able to offer sharp criticism, spot various flaws, and point out deficiencies even in well-received works with a critical eye, when it came to writing himself, he realized that his speed was…… well, a bit slow.
Even though several days had passed, how had he only written this tiny amount?
Sigh, it had to be because his thinking was too meticulous. He strived for perfection in everything. Though only a few words were on paper, his thoughts had already accounted for every single aspect of the story.
Besides, this kind of prompt based writing really restricted his creative flair; such a childish premise simply couldn’t carry his grand ideas.
However, he naturally couldn’t let President Gu know he was having trouble with the game script. At this point, he could only condescend to finish writing it himself.
As a middle manager of the company, he still possessed a strong sense of responsibility.
The more the Editor in Chief thought about it, the more he felt he was truly exceptional. His current salary didn’t even match his worth anymore.
Once he finished the story, President Gu might be so amazed that he’d recruit him directly into Qiming Games.
That’s right, now that Qiming Games had grown to this scale, it was high time to establish a separate creative department dedicated to writing original IPs for their games. And he was the perfect candidate for the job!
At this thought, the Editor in Chief shivered with excitement. If he truly boarded the grand ship that was Qiming Games, his status would be entirely different!
Just as he was staring at the nearly blank document and daydreaming about his future, Mo Yu happened to submit his detailed outline.
【Editor in Chief, please take a look.】
All writers were required to submit their work for his review.
However, the Editor in Chief found the name “Mo Yu” eyesore status right now.
Hiring Mo Yu in the first place had been Liu Yun’s idea. This young man had no real experience, an ordinary educational background, and during the interview, he hadn’t shown the obedience or ambition expected of a young employee.
He couldn’t see at all how Mo Yu had stood out from the other resumes.
Even less could he believe that Liu Yun actually thought President Gu held him in high regard.
The Editor in Chief sneered. He opened Mo Yu’s detailed outline, and the tiny setback he had experienced earlier from the agony of writing instantly vanished into thin air. He felt that everything Mo Yu wrote was riddled with problems, which restored his boundless confidence.
“You’re still too young. Writing like this won’t win President Gu’s appreciation, nor will it be adopted.”
“Sigh, perhaps this project shouldn’t have been handed to you from the start, which is why it had to be revised so many times. In the end, President Gu even had to ask me to write it personally. I’m very busy, so I won’t be able to guide you anymore. Figure it out yourself.”
Mo Yu froze for a moment.
So that was it? Gu Jinzhi had decided from the very beginning that he wouldn’t use his draft.
Mo Yu lowered his head.
Well, that was……
Truly fantastic!
He could just scribble whatever and get off work early again today.
Even better, the Editor in Chief said he wouldn’t meddle anymore, meaning he didn’t need to force himself to write in that pedantic, overly literary style the Editor in Chief liked just to pass his review.
Unable to hide his curling lips, Mo Yu typed even faster.
The moment it was time to clock out, Mo Yu was the first one to leave. While driving home, because he knew the route so well, his brain remained completely spaced out.
However, after following the navigation around a turn, Mo Yu suddenly felt something was off.
Wait a second. Who was he, and where was he?
Why was he surrounded entirely by luxury mansions?
Wasn’t this a villa district?
Mo Yu glared accusingly at his navigation system.
What’s the meaning of this? Is this a home? Can I afford to live here?! Why are you navigating me here?!
Just as Mo Yu was about to make a U-turn, an oncoming car suddenly crossed the yellow line, veering off course right toward him.
Startled, Mo Yu slammed on the brakes and made an emergency right turn, swerving into the entrance of a villa community.
The surrounding greenery immediately became unnaturally lush and extravagant.
Still shaken, Mo Yu drove up along the tree lined path. Looking up at the densely packed clouds pressing down from above, he finally realized what was wrong.
Pulling out his phone to check, sure enough, the countdown timer had hit zero again.
So I traveled here for nothing.
Last time, when the water pipes in his mother’s house suddenly burst, he had already suspected it, some mysterious force was manipulating his surroundings to select the location for the scenario.
No matter how annoyed Mo Yu felt, he could only hurry to find a parking spot.
Despite not being far from the city center, this residential area was so spacious it felt like a park. Mo Yu glanced at the exceptionally imposing, detached villa closest to him.
So… was this scenario related to luxury mansions?
As the clock hands pointed to eight o’clock, he instantly grew too drowsy to keep his eyes open, slumping directly onto the steering wheel.
When he opened his eyes again, he was indeed inside a mansion.
Mo Yu felt the air around him was fragrant, and something soft brushed against his face.
He was sitting at a dining table. Someone was leaning tightly against him, seemingly trying to reach for something behind him, almost pressing their entire body against his. A chest was pressed right next to his face.
Mo Yu was a bit dazed.
Because he felt…this person pressing against him felt somewhat familiar.
However, the outfit this person was wearing…
Made him utterly terrified to associate them with Gu Jinzhi.
Soon, that person took a plate from a waiter behind Mo Yu and placed it in front of him.
Such a simple movement made the person’s breathing slightly unstable. They even covered their own mouth.
“Your pheromones…”
…What pheromones?
That voice.
Mo Yu swallowed hard and could only look up at him. The next instant, his pupils contracted, and he didn’t even know where to look.
It really was Gu Jinzhi!
Help! He was looking at Gu Jinzhi in a maid outfit and a skimpy, revealing version at that!
Mo Yu only took a single glance and didn’t dare look any further. It wasn’t that… it didn’t look good.
It was just that once Boss Gu regained his memories, wouldn’t he assassinate him… to silence the witness?!