Han Shen did not get out of the car, so Ji Ran did not dare to make a move on his own. He glanced up at the driver, only to find that the driver looked just as confused as he was.
It was not until Han Shen called his name that Ji Ran immediately straightened up in his seat.
“Is there something you need me to do?”
Han Shen did not answer. He merely sat there in silence, quietly watching him.
Ji Ran was wearing a black down jacket today. It was very clean, without a single stain but it had clearly lost much of its original loft. Anyone could tell that it had been washed many times and as a result, its ability to keep him warm had been greatly diminished.
Once they were indoors, he would take off the down jacket, revealing the shirt and suit he wore underneath.
His body was slender and thin and on the slightly protruding vertebra at the back of his neck was a small, faint red mole.
Han Shen suddenly remembered a comment from one of the netizens under a video posted by “Working_is_bound_to_drive_you_crazy”:
[There’s actually a mole right there! That’s way too damn sexy!!! Isn’t that exactly where an omega’s gland would be?? If the gong bit down right there… Tsk, I don’t even dare imagine how good that would be.]
Did Ji Ran know that he had a mole in that spot?
Or was it simply a coincidence?
But Ji Ran had always been obedient and well behaved in front of him. His attitude toward work was also consistently proper and serious. He did not seem anything like the personality behind “Working_is_bound_to_drive_you_crazy.”
Han Shen asked Ji Ran, “Have you been under a lot of pressure at work lately?”
Why was the boss suddenly trying to have a heart to heart conversation with him?
Has he made some kind of mistake at work recently?
Ji Ran immediately became wary yet there was not the slightest hint of it on his face.
“It’s okay.”
Han Shen added, “If there’s a problem, you can tell me.”
Ji Ran nodded. “Okay. If there’s a problem, I’ll let you know.”
He was too well behaved.
Han Shen became somewhat uncertain again.
He thought that Ji Ran probably was not the person behind that account after all.
It really had only been something he said for the sake of saying it.
When Han Shen’s expression returned to its usual cool indifference, Ji Ran became even more certain of that conclusion.
These people all liked to put on an approachable appearance and pretend to care about him yet whenever he actually exposed a weakness and told them about the things troubling him, they would turn around and use those very weaknesses against him.
They would say that it was because he was not sensible enough, not hardworking enough, not strong enough.
The chilblains on his hands were because he was naughty and loved playing with water, rather than because he could only afford to wear a thin cotton padded jacket.
Getting into a fight with someone was because he was naturally aggressive, rather than because it had been the principal’s child who hit him first.
Being under too much pressure at work was because he was not working hard enough, rather than because his superior had assigned him too many tasks.
What difference did it make whether he spoke up or not?
It was always the same.
Ji Ran carried his heavy laptop back to his workstation. It was already nearly time to get off work but he still had a great deal left to finish.
The moment he opened his computer, his phone rang again.
It was a message from Orca.
He had sent Ji Ran a certificate from the foundation, indicating that the donation had been completed.
Ji Ran also posted a public message, telling his followers that the matter had been resolved. He then called on everyone not to ship him and Orca as a couple anymore and not to ship him with anyone else either.
His fans collectively wailed in despair but in the end, they obediently agreed.
……
The next day, Ji Ran sat at his workstation yawning incessantly, looking like he was practically holding a funeral at his desk.
Just when he was so sleepy that he could barely keep his eyes open, he caught the familiar scent again.
Ji Ran instantly perked up and lifted his head, only to discover that Han Shen was walking past his workstation.
It was that same fragrance again.
Ji Ran took his cup to the pantry to make himself some coffee, where he overheard the secretaries chatting.
“Hey, did you notice? The boss changed his perfume.”
“I know. That’s that ‘fuckboy fragrance,’ isn’t it? A mass market scent like this doesn’t really seem like his taste.”
“I actually quite like it. I have a bottle at home.”
“I don’t dislike it either. I just think Samuel would suit those niche fragrances from independent perfume houses better.”
“That’s true. He’s always been very restrained when it comes to perfume and he has really good taste. I wonder why he suddenly changed it this time.”
“Could it be a gift from his girlfriend? I saw him post some pictures on his WeChat moments before…”
Ji Ran pushed the door open, interrupting their conversation.
The two secretaries exchanged an awkward glance before turning around and hurriedly leaving.
Ji Ran placed his cup beneath the coffee machine and added two coffee capsules.
He was simply too tired. If he did not drink coffee in the morning, he could barely make it through the entire morning.
In just one morning, Ji Ran had already attended two meetings.
Investment banking meetings were particularly numerous.
There were meetings where they had to bow and scrape in front of corporate clients, meetings where people inside the company argued with one another and pushed the blame around and all kinds of other meetings.
By the time all of those meetings were finally over, it was already lunchtime.
During the main meal period, the cafeteria would be crowded with people lining up, so Ji Ran planned to go eat ten minutes early.
Unexpectedly, on his way back, he ran into Asher.
Asher had just received a phone call. Looking hurried and preoccupied, he asked Ji Ran whether he was free.
Ji Ran said that he was.
“Then go to Samuel’s office and take the document on his desk to Meeting Room A101,” Asher said as he put his phone away. “The client has arrived. I’m going downstairs to receive them now.”
Ji Ran had no choice but to make a trip to the office first.
Han Shen’s office was not particularly large but it had been designed and arranged with impeccable neatness. There was only a single bound document sitting on the desk.
Ji Ran picked up the document and was about to leave when his attention was caught by a bottle of perfume on the desk.
A transparent rectangular glass bottle, filled with pale amber colored liquid…
It was exactly the same as the bottle he had bought as his Christmas exchange gift.
Could it be that Han Shen had drawn his gift?
Was that why he had recently changed his perfume?
Ji Ran was not sure.
He had ordered this particular perfume online after doing quite a bit of research but he had never actually known what it smelled like.
Curiosity got the better of him.
He unscrewed the cap and pressed the nozzle.
A strong, spicy fragrance poured out, filling the air. Before long, the sharpness transformed into something deep, steady and warm, exactly the same as the scent lingering on Han Shen.
Ji Ran suddenly regretted choosing this perfume as the gift.
He liked this fragrance far too much.
He did not know when it had started but Ji Ran had gradually developed a fondness for the scent of perfume.
Perhaps it was because he still had not grown accustomed to the food and dialect of Shanghai.
Or perhaps he simply wanted to find a little room to breathe amid his overwhelming workload.
Ji Ran wished there were something that could support him.
Coffee could only keep him awake for a short while.
A skirt could only be worn secretly in the bedroom.
What Ji Ran needed was something that could remain with him, accompany him, support him and bring him a little warmth.
And so, perfume became a very good choice.
No matter where he went, as long as he sprayed perfume onto his clothes, the fragrance would form a unique barrier around him, supporting him, embracing him and wrapping him in warmth.
Ji Ran had chosen the perfume as an exchange gift, hoping that it might help someone who experienced the same feelings he did.
He had never expected that Han Shen would be the one to draw it and that he would actually use it.
There was no way he could end up wearing the same fragrance as his boss, right?
Ji Ran inexplicably felt a little irritated. If he had known this would happen, he would have chosen a different perfume back then.
He took the documents to the meeting room but Han Shen was not there. Ji Ran handed everything over to the assistant from the equities department and left.
This particular perfume had excellent longevity. Even after Ji Ran had done nothing more than touch the cap of the bottle, the scent still lingered on his fingertips two hours later.
The fragrance was very faint and would not be noticed by anyone else. Only when he brought his fingers close to his nose could he catch the slightest trace of it, like an immense stretch of land.
The sound of his fingers striking the keyboard stopped.
Ji Ran once again raised his index finger to the tip of his nose.
The scent had already faded considerably. It probably would not be long before it disappeared completely.
Ji Ran lowered his hand with a hint of regret.
Yet the fragrance suddenly grew stronger around his nose.
At the same time, a shadow fell over his head.
Ji Ran looked up and discovered that Han Shen had arrived at some point.
He seemed to have just returned from outside. He had not even had time to take off his overcoat before walking over to Ji Ran’s side and telling him that there was something in the proposal he had submitted that morning that needed to be revised.
Ji Ran opened the document and brought up the relevant section.
“What needs to be changed?”
Instead of answering directly, Han Shen bent down and lowered his gaze toward the screen.
“Keep going down.”
They were too close.
The scent of the perfume became even stronger, as though an invisible embrace had wrapped itself around him.
For some inexplicable reason, Ji Ran’s face began to feel warm.
And, at an extremely inappropriate moment, he suddenly remembered a fragrance review he had read before,
The feeling this perfume gave people was like that of a mature man who loved extreme sports, could take you traveling around the world and could also wear a suit with an overcoat while patiently guiding you through your work.
The description had been so specific that Ji Ran almost instantly thought of Han Shen.
“Julian.”
Someone lightly tapped the desk twice.
The man’s deep, restrained voice sounded beside his ear.
“Stay focused.”
Ji Ran froze for a moment, then his face suddenly flushed bright red.
He hurriedly turned his attention back to the computer and asked Han Shen, “Is it here?”
But unexpectedly, the screen had turned completely white.
His computer had actually frozen…!
Han Shen had clearly never encountered such a miserably outdated setup before.
All of his own electronic devices were top of the line, with high performance and streamlined designs. There was not even a single loose cable cluttering his desk.
Ji Ran’s computer, on the other hand, was not only thick and heavy but also had both a mouse and a charging cable plugged into it. It was so clumsy that it looked like something salvaged from the last century.
Han Shen asked Ji Ran, “What happened to your computer?”
“It froze.”
Ji Ran skillfully closed the unnecessary webpages and programs and calmly said, “It’ll be fine in a moment.”
This time, his computer brother was actually quite cooperative.
It only froze for half a minute.
Ji Ran followed Han Shen’s instructions and made the necessary revisions. After checking everything carefully and confirming that there were no problems, he sent the document over.
His computer was simply too slow and Ji Ran’s work efficiency had been severely affected. He could only scroll through his phone while waiting for the page to refresh.
He logged into his social media account once again.
He had assumed that the previous incident had finally settled down but unexpectedly, the comment section had exploded all over again.
This time, however, nobody was cursing him.
The entire comment section was filled with people frantically screaming in excitement.
What had happened this time?
Ji Ran was completely baffled.
He replied to the comments with a single question mark.
Netizens: !!!
[You silly child! Big Shot Orca followed you!!!]
Ji Ran: “…?”
Ji Ran opened his follower list and discovered that the Orca account was lying there conspicuously near the front.
The account had 17.86 million followers.
No, seriously.
What the hell are you doing?
Do you still remember that we’re supposed to keep our distance from each other?
The netizens’ reactions were unusually intense:
[You two have already gotten together and now you’re telling us not to ship you as a couple???]
[Okay, okay, so you’re not letting us ship you because you’re going to produce your own content for us yourselves, right?]
[Oh my god, am I actually going to witness a love story?!]
The comments were getting more and more ridiculous by the second.
Ji Ran deleted a huge number of them before opening his private message window with Orca.
[Working_is_bound_to_drive_you_crazy]: ? What are you doing?
[Orca]: Sorry. If I’ve caused you any trouble, I apologize but my younger brother is your fan, so I need to take responsibility for the information he receives.
[Working_is_bound_to_drive_you_crazy]: ?? Then why did you follow me?
[Orca]: If the content of your videos is too suggestive, I’ll consider trying to persuade him to unfollow you.
Ji Ran: “…”
What was wrong with this guy?
He wanted to control everything under the sun and now he was even trying to control him?
✦ ✧ ✦
Cressilia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
The magical Realm runs on stories, chaos, and suspicious amounts of coffee.
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · A cold-hearted bossChapter 2 · “Your skirt?”Chapter 3 · Ji Ran was caught off guardChapter 4 · Relax, you bit your lip until it bledChapter 5 · Don’t want toChapter 6 · Women’s clothing and DaddyChapter 7 · Ji Ran hunched over and began to sob softly.Chapter 8 · Rebellion, offense, and self-rewardChapter 9 · I hate it when people flaunt their wealth in front of meChapter 10 · CompensateChapter 11 · Why are you following me?Chapter 12 · Damn, he forgot to take off his leg chainChapter 13 · Ji Ran was indeed still afraid of him.Chapter 14 · A message came from OrcaChapter 15 · Self-blame, anger, and tears.Chapter 16 · You have to pay more!Chapter 17 · Did you come here just to yell at me?Chapter 18 · Just bear with it a little longerChapter 19 · Women’s clothing live streamChapter 20 · Could you come and pick me up?Chapter 21 Part 1 · It’s all an actChapter 21 Part 2 · It’s all an actChapter 22 · The actions could be even more brutalChapter 23 · A slapChapter 24 · He wanted to surrender a part of himself