Customer service work requires a 30-second response rate, meaning every new after-sales inquiry must be answered within half a minute. Having just entered society, the most intensive training Xiang Zhen had received was in message-reply speed; as soon as the “Little Sunflower” AI tagged him, he responded instantly.

In comparison, Zhou Sicheng was not nearly as fast. My husband has such slow hand speed—no wonder he can’t snatch up ride-hailing orders. Little Sunflower had said Zhou Sicheng’s location hadn’t changed in an hour; the ride-hailing business was fiercely competitive. Xiang Zhen solemnly decided that when he had a day off, he would find time to teach his husband how to grab orders.

[You have a new message.]

[LoveToEat: Damn it! Your sunflower seeds are too hard, they chipped my newly capped front tooth! It cost me 1,600 to fix that tooth!]

[Customer Service Sunflower at your service]

[Xiang Zhen: Dear, our shop is very sympathetic to your experience. Could we compensate you 2 yuan?]

[LoveToEat: Fine.]

Xiang Zhen fluently issued the two-yuan refund, humming happily. There was nothing that couldn’t be solved with two yuan.

“Xiang Zhen, what are you ordering for lunch?” his colleague at the next desk, Yu Yueyue, asked casually.

Xiang Zhen couldn’t afford takeout today. All his savings had gone to paying off Zhou Sicheng’s debt, and he had only managed to buy breakfast thanks to the 18-yuan red envelope he’d won from downloading Little Sunflower. As a plant demon, he didn’t technically need to eat, but ever since turning into a human, he had developed cravings for all sorts of things. He could survive on photosynthesis, but it would be strange for a human to skip lunch. Xiang Zhen racked his brains for an excuse to give his colleagues. Just say I have no money? No, he couldn’t mention helping his husband pay off debt—his husband’s pride was more important than the heavens.

Xiang Zhen had a flash of inspiration: he could ask Little Sunflower. He opened his private chat with the bot.

[Xiang Zhen: The secret I told you, will you tell my husband?]

[Little Sunflower: Absolutely not! Feel free to say anything! The me in private chat is different from the me in group chat. You can imagine me as a sunflower; there are thousands of seeds in my flower head, and we are all independent sunflower seeds~]

[Xiang Zhen: My colleagues are inviting me to order takeout, but I haven’t been paid yet and have no money. What’s the most normal excuse to decline?]

[Little Sunflower: The most dignified response is to say you are on a diet. If your salary is paid late, you can apply for a Zhoufu Bank credit card with interest-free installments for up to three months, or you can apply for a salary advance from your boss~]

This Little Sunflower knew humans better than he did!

Xiang Zhen immediately said to Yu Yueyue, “I’m not ordering takeout today. I’m on a diet.”

Yu Yueyue looked at Xiang Zhen’s wrists, which were even thinner than her own, and silently deleted the fried chicken from her shopping cart. To be this thin and still dieting—the price of beauty is too high.

At noon, the office was filled with the scents of sour and spicy noodles, braised pork rice, and malatang. Xiang Zhen couldn’t sit still. A thought struck him, and he ran to the supervisor’s office, ambitiously proposing, “Supervisor, is it possible to advance my salary?”

The supervisor, holding a plate of spicy crab, replied, “Little Zhen, you’ve only been here ten days and you want an advance? That won’t work.”

Xiang Zhen looked at him sincerely. “I can just advance ten days’ worth of pay.”

The supervisor turned his head away. Even though this blonde kid was often infuriating, he was truly stunning—like a demon. It was easy to go soft when being stared at by him. “How about this: the Dragon Boat Festival is coming up. Tomorrow, our company is launching a nut and zongzi gift box set at Huayun Supermarket. If you go there for road promotion, I’ll count it as fieldwork. You’ll get a 100-yuan subsidy for the day, plus tiered sales commissions.”

The supervisor calculated internally: it was a good deal. Xiang Zhen was an in-house customer service agent; if he had to hire someone with this look for a roadshow, it would cost thousands a day.

Xiang Zhen asked shrewdly, “What’s the commission?”

Supervisor: “Ten yuan per box. The more you sell, the more you get. If you sell over 50 boxes, the commission increases to 20 yuan per box.”

Xiang Zhen calculated quickly: if he sold three boxes a day, he could have three cups of milk tea. If he sold six, he could even treat Zhou Sicheng to milk tea.

Supervisor: “Are you doing it or not?”

Xiang Zhen: “I’m doing it!”

Aunt Guihua had told him not to do any work that involved being in the public eye for the first year, to avoid attracting shady, ill-intentioned humans. She had been relieved that his customer service job was simple, with only female colleagues. But now, he was a sunflower with a family, and he had to work hard to make money.

12:30

[Little Sunflower: What are you all eating for lunch? I smell snail rice noodles and fried eggs at my desk. Is that you? @Xiang Zhen, @Zhou Sicheng]

[Xiang Zhen: It’s me!]

Xiang Zhen replied in a second, then private-messaged the bot to apologize: “Sorry, I lied to your seed-brother.”

[Little Sunflower: It’s okay. I allow you to tell me white lies. Did you eat lunch?]

[Xiang Zhen: No. When I’m sunbathing during the day, I’m not hungry. At night, when I see my husband, I’m even less hungry.]

This was the truth. There was the sun in the sky during the day, and his Sun God on the bed at night—Xiang Zhen wasn’t hungry at all.

[Little Sunflower: Haha, if you have love, you’re full. Maybe dig up some wild vegetables, life will get better and better.]

Xiang Zhen’s eyes lit up. “Where can I dig for wild vegetables?” As a sunflower, he didn’t like eating vegetables, but he could dig them for Zhou Sicheng. Little Sunflower immediately listed locations around Haishi, but they were all too far, so Xiang Zhen had to give up regretfully.

At noon, Zhou Sicheng was having lunch with a senior executive from Zhoufu Bank. The head of the finance department, Fan Hao, had studied abroad with Zhou Sicheng and was considered a friend. He sat next to Zhou Sicheng with a small plate of cake and started eating. “I saw you driving a new car this morning. Any new business plans?”

The Maybach was gone, the driver was gone. When Fan Hao saw a BYD in the parking garage, he had backed up to check three times, until Zhou Sicheng stepped out and asked him if he had seen enough. Of course, he hadn’t seen enough, but he was busy with an early morning meeting and couldn’t ask. He had been holding it in all morning and finally found his chance.

Facing high-end imported cuisine, Zhou Sicheng had no appetite. “Mind your own business.”

Fan Hao took a bite of a chocolate brownie. “How is it not my business? Doesn’t the new project need loans and financing? That has to be approved by me. Or are you trying to build cars too? You’re starting late for that.”

Zhou Sicheng: “It’s not about money.”

Fan Hao couldn’t understand it. Was Zhou Sicheng having a mental breakdown? “Personal affairs? You look like you have no appetite. You have a schedule this afternoon; at least eat a few bites if the food is in front of you. Children in Africa can’t even get food if they wanted it.”

Eat? Zhou Sicheng’s expression shifted slightly. He took out his phone. Xiang Zhen had transferred him 30,000 yuan last night; naturally, he hadn’t accepted it, so it would automatically refund after 24 hours. It hadn’t been 24 hours yet, but if Xiang Zhen didn’t have other bank deposits, his WeChat balance wouldn’t be enough to eat on.

Zhou Sicheng held down the transfer and clicked “Refund.” The 30,000 was trivial, so small that he couldn’t keep it in mind, yet it sat heavily on his heart, making him preoccupied all morning.

Fan Hao craned his neck, only to see Zhou Sicheng switch WeChat accounts. The rest of the operation was shielded from him. Switching from a work account to a private one? Something’s up. As far as he knew, Zhou Sicheng had only a few friends on his private account, and none worthy of furrowing his brow like that.

Zhou Sicheng: “Is the cake good?”

Fan Hao instinctively said, “It’s good.”

Zhou Sicheng: “Pack two pieces to take back.”

Fan Hao thought: Zhou-zong’s way of changing the subject is so clumsy. “Sure, sure. It’s rare that you remember I like desserts.”

The lunch was produced by a five-star hotel chef team with a wide variety of desserts made with high-quality ingredients. Fan Hao, who loved desserts, expertly chose the two most delicious pieces and asked the waiter to pack them. After lunch, Fan Hao carried the cake box, pushed open the glass door, and politely let his boss go first.

Zhou Sicheng brushed past him.

???

He looked up. Damn, did Zhou Sicheng steal his cake?

[Transfer Refunded]

Xiang Zhen was stunned to see the message. What’s going on? Husband refunded my money. Does he not want to marry me anymore?

The words “refund the dowry” flashed through his mind, and he hurriedly initiated another transfer to save his marriage. Is 30,000 yuan not enough to keep a handsome human husband?

Zhou Sicheng’s voice call came through: “Xiang Zhen.”

Xiang Zhen whispered, “Husband.”

Zhou Sicheng was silent for a moment before speaking. The brief explanation he had originally planned had been upgraded to a more perfect reason: “The 30,000 yuan is the car loan—two years interest-free. It’s like taking advantage of the bank, so don’t be in a rush to pay it back. Keep it for expenses.”

“Also, I’ll give you 5,000 for household expenses every month. Spend it as you like; don’t just eat snail noodles for lunch.”

Five thousand for household expenses! Spend as I like! Xiang Zhen’s ears tingled from Zhou Sicheng’s generosity, and the tips of his golden hair curled up in a slight arc. “Husband, can you earn that much every month?”

Zhou Sicheng: “I can.”

Xiang Zhen’s mouth curled up. He can! Husband is so capable! He knew it—how could Zhou Sicheng be living beyond his means? It was all to buy a car to make a living. He would save this money to buy a little house in the future.

Xiang Zhen was very happy all afternoon. As it neared the end of the workday, thunder rumbled in the clouds, and a rainstorm was about to pour down. In a storm, even a modern city would become sluggish and bloated.

Liu Xiaofang pulled at her hair in annoyance. “I hate rain. It’s so hard to get a ride when it rains.” Especially in these office buildings with dozens of floors, housing hundreds of small companies. When quitting time came, the “working cattle and horses” poured out; you could be number 100 in the queue for a taxi on a rainy day.

Xiang Zhen’s bright eyes darted around. Does this mean Zhou Sicheng can earn more on a rainy day?

Yu Yueyue complained: “Not only is it hard to get a car, but the back seat is usually wet from the previous person’s umbrella. It’s so uncomfortable.”

Liu Xiaofang: “And if it’s a small, smelly car, that’s the final blow.”

Xiang Zhen puffed out his cheeks. That’s because you didn’t call my husband’s car. Zhou Sicheng’s car is spacious, clean, and he drives steadily—it’s very comfortable. Whoever got Zhou Sicheng’s car today would surely be very lucky.

At 6:30, it was shift-change time. Liu Xiaofang and Yu Yueyue grabbed Xiang Zhen and ran on time. “We proletarians must unite; no one is allowed to work an extra minute.”

Xiang Zhen: “Okay!”

The three of them reached the outside. Sure enough, many people were trying to hail cars; the app’s circles just kept spinning, and there wasn’t enough capacity nearby.

Xiang Zhen opened his umbrella: “I’ll walk back.”

Yu Yueyue held him back. “No way, the rain is so heavy. You didn’t eat lunch, what if you faint from low blood sugar on the way? No one would even notice you in this visibility.”

Liu Xiaofang added: “Just call a car, save where you can, spend where you must.”

Xiang Zhen wasn’t afraid of the rain. His hair was as elegant as sunflower petals; the rainwater just slid off it automatically, never becoming soggy or sticking to his scalp. But a sunflower had to pretend to be a normal human.

Xiang Zhen followed suit: “Then I’ll call a car too!”

He pretended to open the ride-hailing app and place an order, holding his phone, planning to walk home once his colleagues were in their cars. Zhou Sicheng was a ride-hailing driver—how could he ride in another driver’s car?

The would-be passengers watched eagerly as every car with double-flashers pulled over. Liu Xiaofang and Yu Yueyue were roommates and didn’t live in the company’s six-person dorm; they rented a more remote house. “I added 20 yuan and still haven’t got a ride. I pray to the heavens to send me a clean SUV today.”

Xiang Zhen pursed his lips. Twenty yuan—that’s a lot. Could Zhou Sicheng earn that?

Ten minutes later, Liu Xiaofang was stamping her feet in anxiety. “Why hasn’t anyone accepted it? I want to go home and watch the ping-pong match.”

Yu Yueyue: “Got it, got it! The driver is finishing his previous order, it’ll take ten minutes. Xiang Zhen, did you get a car?”

Xiang Zhen said vaguely: “Almost, almost.”

At that moment, a brand-new white SUV had its headlights pierce through the dark curtain of rain. Its four wheels pressed into the spray as it pulled over slowly with its double-flashers on.

Liu Xiaofang was envious. “This driver looks very civilized; I want to sit in this one.”

Many people looked at the license plate, hoping it would match their ticket. Xiang Zhen was bored, so he stretched out a finger, caught two drops of rain, and pursed his lips as they melted into his palm.

Suddenly, the highly sought-after car stopped in front of him.

The window rolled down. Xiang Zhen looked up, locking eyes with Zhou Sicheng through the curtain of rain.

“Get in.”

Xiang Zhen was stunned. He saw Zhou Sicheng’s dashboard screen showing a call in progress and realized belatedly that the phone in his pocket was vibrating. He took a step forward.

Yu Yueyue hadn’t noticed the driver’s face at all, just envied Xiang Zhen: “You actually got a car faster than me! Hurry up and get in! See you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow.”

Xiang Zhen ducked into the passenger seat, staring straight at Zhou Sicheng, his eyes shimmering with brilliance. The sun didn’t come out all day, but I’ve found it now.

Zhou Sicheng looked ahead: “Fasten your seatbelt.” He was just heading home; he hadn’t come specifically to pick him up.

Being watched by Xiang Zhen, as if the whole world could only see him, Zhou Sicheng felt the darkness in front of him brighten.

Xiang Zhen: “Husband, you’re so handsome. You’ve given me so much face in front of my colleagues.”

Zhou Sicheng curled his mouth up slightly.

Xiang Zhen’s eyes crinkled: “They were all envious that I got a car.”

Zhou Sicheng dropped his smile.