Jiang Zao hurriedly covered himself, utterly flustered.
“What are you two trying to do?!” he exclaimed. “I’m the boss, you know!”
“Boss, hehe…” Cheng Jiamin murmured, tilting her head and letting a strange, almost mischievous smile creep across her face. “This actually makes it more fun.”
Jiang Zao: “……”
Qi Yiran cleared his throat. “We haven’t decided yet either. But that’s for after the final draft. For now, at 10 o’clock in Conference Room One, we’ll have a brainstorming session for the first block of the seasonal series. Boss, don’t forget to come.”
“Oh, okay.” Jiang Zao hugged his bag and walked toward the office, planning to organize his materials and grab some breakfast.
Honey Bunny’s corporate culture was always laid-back. There weren’t strict hierarchies, and with the branch being so small, fewer than 20 employees.
Jiang Zao, despite being the boss, was fully involved in project development, especially the initial planning stages.
He pulled out a slice of bread from his desk drawer and headed to the pantry to make a cup of coffee.
The company’s coffee machine had many options, and Jiang Zao liked sweet things. He refused bitter black coffee, like the typical American brew.
He never understood why anyone would enjoy something so harsh, he even thought bitter coffee tasted like medicine. (His opinion was admittedly shallow.)
Only a few rare people, like Zhou Yuchi, seemed to enjoy black coffee without sugar, purely bitter. Jiang Zao never knew if they were trying to look cool or just secretly trained themselves to endure bitterness.
But last night’s nightmare had left Jiang Zao’s brain in chaos. He somehow pressed the wrong button, and when he picked up the cup and took a sip, he recoiled. Bitter.
American coffee.
He couldn’t believe it. His perfect morning had been ruined by Zhou Yuchi.
Fuming, Jiang Zao grabbed his phone and began a furious bombardment of messages toward Zhou Yuchi:
[EarlyToBed: [PunchPunch.JPG]]
[EarlyToBed: [PunchPunch.JPG]]
[EarlyToBed: [PunchPunch.JPG]]
…twenty in a row.
Almost instantly, he received a reply:
[Mad Dog (▽皿▽#): 1]
“What does ‘1’ even mean?” Jiang Zao muttered, utterly baffled.
[EarlyToBed: Where are you?]
Zhou Yuchi sent a location, F University, Building 3 of the Experimental Labs.
Jiang Zao was dumbfounded. He’d really seen it all. Back in high school, Zhou Yuchi’s locations were always either the internet cafe or lounging at home. Now he was pretending to be a diligent student?
[EarlyToBed: You won’t get away unpunished.]
Zhou Yuchi’s reply was flat:
[Mad Dog (▽皿▽#): Got it.]
Jiang Zao typed furiously again.
[EarlyToBed: How did you sleep last night?]
“You’re not allowed to have sleep better than me,” he added in his head.
[Mad Dog (▽皿▽#): ?]
Jiang Zao blinked. “? …What question mark? What does this mean?”
[Mad Dog (▽皿▽#): Surprised. You actually initiated first.]
Jiang Zao: “??”
Initiated what?!
[Mad Dog (▽皿▽#): Thanks, ZaoZao.]
[Mad Dog (▽皿▽#): I slept very well.]
[EarlyToBed: [DeadlySmile.JPG] [KickAngrily.JPG]]
[EarlyToBed: You should’ve just slept through it 🙂]
Speechless, Jiang Zao finally put his phone down, added sugar and milk to his black coffee, and carried it back to the office.
A new email had popped up from Qi Yiran with the field survey data. Jiang Zao exported the data and began processing it so that it would be ready as reference for the upcoming meeting.
“Boss, it’s time. Let’s go,” Qi Yiran knocked on the door after a while.
“Okay, let me just print this report first.” Jiang Zao replied.
“Wow, Boss, you’re fast. Already done?” Qi Yiran praised him, “Send it to Bei Bei; he’s printing on that side and can bring it over.”
Jiang Zao nodded and forwarded the report to Director Bei.
Because most of the employees were young, meetings were relaxed and informal.
Unlike traditional companies that dragged internal meetings endlessly, here discussions were professional but lighthearted.
Jiang Zao carried his laptop into the conference room. Even after a month of work, he still found the visual impact of the room overwhelming.
Some genius designer had arranged a display rack up front, filled with various styles of condoms stacked like a new book display at a bookstore, colors arranged in a rainbow gradient from left to right.
Beside it were several popular clothing items on mannequins.
The showcase also featured toys, Devil Xiao Zi standing at the center, surrounded by every imaginable shape and design.
Truly impressive. If there were BL manga or novels displayed too, it would be a sanctuary of inspiration.
“Little boss, here, here.” Cheng Jiamin patted the seat next to her.
Jiang Zao touched his face, good, no longer burning. He sat down beside her. Next to him was project lead Ge Xiao.
“Hello, little boss,” Ge Xiao greeted.
“Hi hi.” Jiang Zao, despite being the boss, acted like any other employee. But everyone found him adorable and kept calling him “boss,” which made his inner embarrassment slightly easier to hide.
He tactically sipped water from the desk, trying to cover his fluster, and smiled at the small toys across the table. “Oh, the new models are here, huh?”
He hadn’t seen the banana shaped and baton shaped toys before.
“Yes, little boss,” Ge Xiao replied. “Oh, by the way, did you try the last product I gave you? How is it? Useful? Did it… work?”
Pfft!! Jiang Zao spat water everywhere.
My goodness!
The blunt question made him cough violently for several seconds. Cheng Jiamin patted his back repeatedly until he calmed down.
“Wow, that was harsh.” Cheng Jiamin and Ge Xiao laughed. “Ge Xiao, the little boss doesn’t need every detail explained, do you?”
Jiang Zao turned his head in shock. “??!!” Even you didn’t spare me, Minmin!
He finally regained some composure. Calm. Self-control. Professionalism.
Blushing slightly, eyes wide and pure, Jiang Zao said seriously, “Well… the company’s products do focus heavily on user experience.”
“I agree,” Ge Xiao nodded.
“So, Ge team lead, you should try it at home tonight and submit an evaluation report to the physical toys team tomorrow.”
“?” Ge Xiao froze.
“You have to try it yourself to see if it works.” Jiang Zao replied.
Ge Xiao sweated nervously. “Boss… my attributes don’t match…”
Cheng Jiamin laughed beside him. “Sacrifice a little for work, it’s fine. The little boss said it, you can’t refuse.”
The room erupted in playful chaos, Ge Xiao and Cheng Jiamin almost grappling over the toys, when Director Bei and Qi Yiran finally entered, papers in hand.
“What’s all the commotion?” Qi Yiran laughed.
Director Bei closed the door. “We’re here to meet, not play. Save the chatting for after.”
Everyone settled into their seats.
Despite the company being a toy business, meetings were professional, focused on planning and sales strategy, not frivolous fun. Jiang Zao generally sat quietly, listening, trusting the senior employees for expertise.
“Last quarter’s knock-knock lingerie themes, can we try something fresh?” Cheng Jiamin said midway through the meeting, pointing at the PPT. “These are everywhere on the market. Not competitive at all.”
“Based on surveys collected online and offline, users care more about interactivity and fun in clothing,” Director Bei added. “Our bestsellers’ sales dropped 7% last quarter. We need something more striking this time.”
The conference room fell into thoughtful silence.
Cheng Jiamin suddenly turned to Jiang Zao. “Little Boss, do you have any ideas?”
Being called on so unexpectedly, Jiang Zao felt exactly like a student suddenly forced to answer in class.
“Well… I did think of something,” he began, pausing briefly. “While reviewing the surveys, I noticed something interesting. When it comes to pursuing a sense of experience, users seem to value psychological satisfaction more than physical pleasure.”
“There’s a natural rebellious streak in human psychology,” Jiang Zao continued. “The more something is forbidden, the more we crave it. In psychology, this is called the Pandora Effect.”
He tapped his chin thoughtfully. “In everyday life, this effect is widely applied. Forbidden places attract explorers.
A half-hidden face makes people want to peek. I think we can use this principle to design this quarter’s clothing line with a touch of restraint, ‘forbidden allure.’”
Jiang Zao leaned forward, his eyes glinting with thought. “If we add a backstory to each outfit, we can stimulate the psychological aspect while satisfying visual impact, giving the customer a sense of temptation or taboo.”
Qi Yiran slammed his palm lightly on the table. “Oh! I get it! Like, um…”
“Shh….. ” Jiang Zao raised a finger to his lips, stopping him. “We can’t write that. Forbidden content.”
Qi Yiran hurriedly closed his mouth, sheepish.
“You really are professional, Little Boss,” Director Bei said approvingly. “I’ve always wanted to create a ‘pure desire campus’ theme. The company hasn’t launched such a series before.”
“Ohhh my love!” Cheng Jiamin practically squealed. “Dangerous delinquent ‘uke’ x unshakable, calm scholar ‘seme.’ Gentle, pure next-door ‘uke’ x dark, stalking, devoted younger brother ‘seme.’ So cute!”
“You’d be wasted as a BL comic editor downstairs,” Ge Xiao remarked, slightly exasperated. “Sexual products are individual-focused. All of your ideas are full-on CPs.”
“I think everyone can go back and think of a design leaning toward the ‘forbidden’,” Director Bei said. “One idea per person, at least one design concept. We’ll gather them and discuss later.”
The meeting wrapped up, and everyone returned to their workstations.
Jiang Zao sat in front of his computer, staring at the blank document on the screen.
Hmm… pure desire campus theme.
Who in college would think it’s appropriate to design… these kinds of intimate items?
His mind drifted back to all the annoyances of college life: a roomful of hyperactive classmates, maddening group projects with deaf teammates, hordes of clueless professors at finals, self-absorbed guys full of confidence, and ever-available, overbearing mentors. Perfect material for… seduction.
Rubbing his head, Jiang Zao pinched the soft flesh on his cheeks, his long eyelashes fluttering as he frowned, staring at the screen and thinking.
But there was no time to dwell, being the boss was far busier than he had imagined, especially during this transitional period at the end of the quarter.
“Little Boss, please sign this document.”
“Boss, the shipment over there needs confirmation.”
“No, the website didn’t suddenly crash, I’m looking at a reference!”
The boss was like a brick, needed wherever needed.
With so much going on, and having barely slept the night before, by the time he finished work, it was already eight at night.
“Boss, are you okay?” Cheng Jiamin reached over and patted Jiang Zao’s head, which was resting on the desk.
Jiang Zao turned slightly, showing a small side of his face. “My head hurts a bit… probably because I didn’t sleep well last night.”
“My poor little one.” Cheng Jiamin pinched his cheeks. “Go home soon. It’s really late already.”
“You all…” Jiang Zao glanced around. Most of the office was still working overtime.
“End-of-quarter hustle, it’s normal,” Cheng Jiamin said with a smile. “And I think it’s kind of fun.”
“…You office enthusiasts really have niche tastes,” Jiang Zao muttered.
Cheng Jiamin laughed, draping an arm around his shoulder. “By the way, Boss, you need to check out the new samples.”
The “new samples” were the latest intimate clothing prototypes.
“I’ll pack them in a box for you to take home,” Cheng Jiamin said, worried that Jiang Zao would be too tired. She placed the garments neatly into a box and handed it over.
Jiang Zao glanced down. The colors were bright. The fabric, however, was minimal.
He picked up a piece, flipping it over. He couldn’t figure out which part of the body it was meant to cover.
“This is…?” Jiang Zao asked, puzzled.
“You’re holding it wrong, Boss.” Cheng Jiamin rotated the fabric, then demonstrated on Jiang Zao’s body. “The slit goes here, the two straps tie like this… and this is the sleeve. Yep, just like that.”
Jiang Zao looked at the few straps on top of the outfit. He had no idea what to say. Nothing that should be covered was, and everything that shouldn’t be revealed was completely exposed.
He sighed and peeled the garment off. “…Fine. I’ll take it home and check the quality myself.”
The moon hid behind clouds, leaving the night sky a deep, bluish black. Perhaps due to the weather, the night seemed oddly bright.
Jiang Zao carried the heavy box home, silently grateful that it had a lid and no provocative patterns or writing on the outside. Otherwise, on the subway, he would have been the center of attention.
Finally reaching his apartment, he pressed the elevator, setting the box down once inside. His face was pale; he wiped the sweat from his brow, feeling dizzy and unwell.
His phone vibrated, an incoming call.
“Hey! I’m Zao! Wanna go out?” It was Bai Yunfan’s voice.
Jiang Zao replied decisively, “No.”
“What? You didn’t even let me finish before rejecting me!” Bai Yunfan protested.
The elevator was almost at his floor. Jiang Zao switched to speaker, bent down to lift the box, and listened as Bai Yunfan nagged: “It’s the academic bar I mentioned last time, they have bartenders in aprons!”
Jiang Zao gave a few indifferent “Mm hm’s.” “Fine, fine. Go then.”
“Nooo, Zao! We’re supposed to go together!” Bai Yunfan whined.
“I’m exhausted. You don’t understand the pain of working.” Jiang Zao reached his apartment door, propping the box with one leg while reaching for the key.
“I understand, I understand! That’s why I want to take you out to relax!” Bai Yunfan insisted. “I heard you can see abs there!”
Jiang Zao twisted the key awkwardly; the keychain jangled. Bai Yunfan continued pestering him in the background: “Come on, come on!”
“I said I’m not going.” Jiang Zao jostled the box with his knee to steady it, readjusted his grip, and tried the key again. He added firmly, as if making a declaration:
“Even if a guy with abs appeared right in front of me, I wouldn’t…”
Before he could finish twisting, the apartment door swung open on its own.
There, standing in the doorway, was a torso of sculpted chest muscles glistening with moisture, descending into a sharply defined eight-pack.
Huh?
Jiang Zao’s mind went blank.
Why was a six-pack opening his door?
Before he could form the question in his head, his center of gravity shifted. The door offered no support for his knee, and in an instant, he toppled forward.
He instinctively reached to grab the heavy box with one hand while the other searched for anything to steady himself.
The next second, his open hand landed squarely on those firm, rippling abs.
He felt the muscles tense under his touch, power radiating upward from the lower abdomen along taut veins.
Hot. Hard. Real.
Jiang Zao’s eyes widened in panic.
He looked up and met Zhou Yuchi’s cold, impassive face.
✦ ✧ ✦
Cressilia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
Yes, this is the part where we shamelessly ask for coffee.
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · The BossChapter 2 · Childhood FriendChapter 3 · Settlement of AccountChapter 4 · Button UnderwearChapter 5 · Open The DoorChapter 6 · (O△O)!Chapter 7 · Woe to himChapter 8 · Break The JarChapter 9 · Keep your promiseChapter 10 · MovieChapter 11 · Try on clothesChapter 12 · Hide! Hide! HIDE!Chapter 13 · ShameChapter 14 · ProtocolChapter 15 · TraceChapter 16 · What are you nervous about?Chapter 17 · Physical TestChapter 18 · Protect One’s OwnChapter 19 · MassageChapter 20 · BiteChapter 21 · Bring him homeChapter 22 · True LoveChapter 23 · After drinkingChapter 24 · MarketChapter 25 · Temporary TattooChapter 26 · Shooting GameChapter 27 · Escape GameChapter 28 · Terrifying dreamChapter 29 · ExhibitionChapter 30 · Pocky GameChapter 31 · TeasingChapter 32 · Pure scoundrelChapter 33 · Straight menChapter 34 · Gay BarChapter 35 · Lip lickingChapter 36 · Doesn’t seem like a good personChapter 37 · AddictionChapter 38 · Reporting videoChapter 39 · Rough LanguageChapter 40 · Wow!Chapter 41 · Hot spring resort～～Chapter 42 · It looks good!Chapter 43 · Hot SpringChapter 44 · HonestyChapter 45 · VinegarChapter 46 · I’ll keep you companyChapter 47 · Rocking ChairChapter 48 · VileChapter 49 · Losing ComposureChapter 50 · A Guide to Identifying Gay MenChapter 51 · Going HomeChapter 52 · KissChapter 53 · PeckChapter 54 · Pearl Wedding AttireChapter 55 · For No ReasonChapter 56 · Stop CalculatingChapter 57 · HandcuffsChapter 58 · Too FarChapter 59 · The MuzzleChapter 60 · Taking It FurtherChapter 61 · Does kissing feel good?Chapter 62 · HmmChapter 63 · GuidanceChapter 64 · VideoChapter 65 · No ProblemChapter 66 · Come DownChapter 67 · Is That All?Chapter 68 · HmphChapter 69 · Applying MedicineChapter 70 · ToysChapter 71 · BathroomChapter 72 · PlacementChapter 73 · WaitingChapter 74 · LoveChapter 75 · StarsChapter 76 · RoommateChapter 77 · BoyfriendChapter 78 · MouthChapter 79 · MidsummerChapter 80 · Aeroplane ChessChapter 81 · Ice CubesChapter 82 · All Night LongChapter 83 · SleepChapter 84 · The Alt AccountChapter 85 · End of the Main StoryChapter 86 · Extra 1Chapter 87 · Extra 2Chapter 88 · Extra 3Chapter 89 · Extra 4Chapter 90 · Extra 5Chapter 91 · Extra 6Chapter 92 · Extra 7Chapter 93 · Extra 8Chapter 94 · Extra 9Chapter 95 · Extra 10Chapter 96 · Extra 11