The curtains were half-drawn, allowing moonlight to spill in at an angle and bathe the room in a silver glow.
Yu Yanzhuo straightened his back and looked at the person lying on the bed. He casually pulled two tissues from the nightstand and slowly placed them over the other man’s lower abdomen. The sensation of the tissue brushing against his skin felt exceptionally vivid in that moment. Shi Jingyan trembled and reached out to grab Yu Yanzhuo’s hand. “Do not…”
“Do not what?”
Yu Yanzhuo ignored him, continuing his movements with light precision. “Who told you to get it everywhere?” After speaking, he let out a soft chuckle. “Virgins, honestly.”
Shi Jingyan had maintained his integrity for over twenty years and had never felt ashamed or embarrassed by his single status. However, hearing those words from the mouth of this flamboyant succubus made the mockery feel far more biting. He spoke almost through gritted teeth. “Then stay away from me.”
Upon hearing this, Yu Yanzhuo did not get angry. He leaned down slightly, bringing his face close to Shi Jingyan’s ear.
“It is fine. I like your type.”
His voice was low, slightly raspy, and carried a hint of satisfied desire. Shi Jingyan subconsciously swallowed. He felt his heart, in a rare occurrence, accelerate slightly at that sentence. He slapped away Yu Yanzhuo’s hand, used his elbows to push himself back, and sat upright. He pulled his bathrobe tight to cover himself completely as a way to hide his agitation.
He stole a glance at Yu Yanzhuo’s lips, which appeared slightly flushed, before looking away toward another part of the room. His voice was a bit hoarse. “Is this how you… feed?”
This was also something he had looked up online previously. It was said that succubi relied on absorbing human essence to sustain their lives, and the humans they haunted would gradually grow weaker. Yu Yanzhuo raised a finger to elegantly wipe the corner of his mouth and glanced at him. “It is not exactly feeding. I do not rely on this to stay alive. Human food is the same to me, except…”
He trailed off with a lazy drawl, reaching his hand around the back of Shi Jingyan’s neck to rest it on his shoulder. His warm breath brushed against Shi Jingyan’s earlobe and neck.
“It is like tasting a very delicious dessert. You taste wonderful, baby.”
That last sentence was a low, magnetic murmur, as intimate as a lover’s whisper. The moment Shi Jingyan understood the words, his ears burned a bright red. The flush spread from his earlobes to his neck, and even his exposed white chest was dyed crimson.
He opened his mouth to rebuke Yu Yanzhuo for speaking so flippantly, but his throat felt half-blocked. He could not make a sound. He could only turn his face away in embarrassment, not wanting Yu Yanzhuo to see his undignified expression. Yu Yanzhuo had already taken in every detail of his reaction. His lips curled up, and as if reading Shi Jingyan’s mind, he offered a casual reminder.
“You do not need to worry about your health being affected, though. A succubus’s favor is something humans long for but cannot obtain. Acquiring bodily fluids through intercourse with us can actually help you maintain youth for a long time.”
He thought of his father, who had been completely captivated by his succubus mother the first time they met. Shi Jingyan remained stiff for a moment before instinctively retorting, “I did not acquire yours…”
He paused abruptly, swallowing the rest of the sentence. “Instead, you have been…”
The rest of the words were also impossible to say. Yu Yanzhuo’s curiosity had been satisfied for the day, and he had no intention of lingering. He withdrew his hand and stood up gracefully. The sudden loss of warmth on his shoulder caused Shi Jingyan to daze for a second. He watched as Yu Yanzhuo walked to the window and flipped outside with effortless grace. He did not even look back once.
Shi Jingyan stared at the window, which was still letting in the night breeze. He stood up, walked over to close it, and hesitated for two seconds before clicking the lock into place. It was better than nothing. After returning to the bed, his phone screen lit up with messages from the work group. He stared at the chat list for a while, only then realizing that he still did not know the succubus’s name. It seemed there had been no opportunity to ask.
He clicked into Yu Yanzhuo’s social media profile. It was full of photos. There were profile shots of him leaning against a flashy sports car, pictures of his long, porcelain-white fingers holding a wine glass, and candid shots of him glancing at the camera as the wind blew through his hair. His molten gold eyes looked even more brilliant than sunlight. In just a few posts, the sports cars appearing in the photos were all different models. He was clearly a top-tier wealthy heir.
Shi Jingyan stared at the near-perfect features in the photos for a moment. Suddenly, he remembered the viewer from tonight’s live stream who had been suspiciously generous. No, how could it be? He quickly dismissed the thought, placed his phone steadily on the nightstand, and turned off the light. The room fell into silence.
In the morning, on the top floor of the Huanya Century Building, Yu Yanzhuo sat in his office chair, propping his chin on his hand as he listened to his subordinate’s report.
“Young Master Yu, regarding the requirements you proposed last time, we have completed the first round of contact with the seven Category A brands we initially screened.”
The assistant looked at the report in his hand. “Almost all brands expressed a very high willingness to cooperate. They are willing to provide the most generous entry conditions and suggested they could make further concessions on marketing resources and profit-sharing ratios. Among them,” the assistant paused briefly, his tone gaining a slight emphasis, “the Hua Yun Tang Group, a well-known local brand, showed the most prominent sincerity. One might even call it desperate.”
“Oh?” Hearing the word desperate, Yu Yanzhuo looked up. “How desperate?”
“Hua Yun Tang stated that they can send their business lead to visit Huanya personally at any time for in-depth negotiations. Their preliminary proposal has already offered conditions regarding rent deductions and joint marketing investments that far exceed our usual cooperation standards.”
The assistant added, “During the contact, they mentioned multiple times that they hope to use Huanya’s project to complete a youthful upgrade of their brand image. Huanya’s platform is an opportunity they cannot afford to miss.”
Yu Yanzhuo smiled. “So eager? What is the specific situation with this Hua Yun Tang?”
“It has been established for about thirty years and is a leader among high-end domestic products. They have a solid reputation, a complete counter system, and extensive offline operation experience. They can bring a stable base of customer traffic. One reason for their desperation is that their core customer base is older. They hope to shift more toward a younger consumer group and therefore need our platform.”
No wonder it sounded familiar. Yu Yanzhuo had a vague feeling that he had seen this brand at his mother’s place before.
“Fine, that works.” Yu Yanzhuo nodded. “You said they are willing to send a representative to Huanya to negotiate. When is the earliest they can come?”
“They said anytime. It mainly depends on our schedule.”
Yu Yanzhuo took a sip of black tea. “Then the earlier, the better. Let us settle this quickly so I can report back to my father. Have them arrange it as soon as possible.”
The assistant nodded. Yu Yanzhuo then asked casually, “Which family is the controlling shareholder? Do I know them?”
He vaguely remembered that the families of the people he usually hung out with were also involved in the beauty industry. He wondered if it was an acquaintance. The assistant flipped through the materials and said steadily, “The Shi family. The chairman is Shi Yunwang.”
“Never heard of him.” Yu Yanzhuo lost interest and waved his hand for the assistant to go prepare. However, that surname sounded familiar. It happened to be the same as Shi Jingyan’s.