With the Saint Games matter settled, Jing Hong gave himself a short three-to-four-day break.

Ever since he took over the reins of the empire, Jing Hong had never taken a vacation.

There was simply too much work.

Jing Hong had his assistant, Tan Qian, book an island in the Maldives to unwind. The resort was opened a few years ago by LVMH, and Jing Hong had never been there before. It was said to have exceptional ocean views, facilities, food, and service, making it ideal for a vacation. Most importantly, it consisted of one main island and four smaller satellite islands. The two smaller islands on the right side housed the guest villas, while the two on the left were private islands—one villa per island, completely isolated from everyone else. Jing Hong booked one of those private islands.

For this vacation, Jing Hong didn’t bring any assistants or staff, traveling alone. He took a commercial flight to Malé first, and without even taking a break, he boarded the resort’s private seaplane directly to the island.

It was indeed far away from the hustle and bustle of the world. The moment he stepped onto the island, Jing Hong felt it was “indeed quite nice.”

Right in the center of the private island sat a house spanning over 1,000 square meters. The middle section was a vast living room. Outside its floor-to-ceiling windows, one side faced golden sands and an azure ocean, while the other side held a 25-meter swimming pool—level with and equal in width to the house—with more beach and ocean stretching beyond its far edge. A row of lounge chairs lined the poolside, which could face either out toward the sea or back toward the house. Inside the living room were a piano, sofas, and a bar counter. On either side of the living room were two bedrooms, two bathrooms, as well as dressing rooms, an office, and more. The furniture was made of top-tier mahogany, and the household amenities were entirely from luxury brands under LVMH. A dedicated team of Ambassadeurs stood ready to serve guests at a moment’s notice.

Though it was supposed to be a vacation to rest, sitting in the villa’s office facing the ocean view, Jing Hong still opened his laptop, logged into his email, and checked his work messages.

He reviewed and approved several matters. Feeling a bit exhausted afterward, Jing Hong took a short nap. To clear out time for this vacation, Jing Hong had worked continuously through the previous night processing tasks and holding video conferences without a wink of sleep, followed by hours of flying today—and Jing Hong never slept on airplanes.

Lying in bed, Jing Hong felt a little hungry. Both sleepy and hungry, the usually decisive and resolute CEO Jing fell into a state of immense dilemma: should he get up to eat, or stay in bed? It was as if this were the greatest puzzle in the universe. In the middle of his agonizing indecision, he drifted off to sleep.

When he woke up, it was already 7:00 PM local time.

Jing Hong asked the service team to prepare some local fish, which he ate alongside a salad. After resting for a bit while gazing at the sea, he suddenly felt like visiting the night pool on the main island.

In the resort’s promotional materials, that infinity pool was a heavily featured attraction that sounded quite special.

Jing Hong had the service team steer a small boat to take him over to the main island.

The night pool was indeed extraordinary.

It was located inside a building featuring a spacious interior, a soaring vaulted ceiling, and tall stone pillars standing around the perimeter. The pool itself was designed by a famous artist. Looking down from above, the pool appeared to be filled entirely with clear, deep-blue ocean water, while the bottom was partitioned by wavy lines into black, yellow, and white sand zones. The three colors were carved into various sections by irregular curved lines, separated yet embracing and twining around one another with a profound sense of artistry. Warm yellow lights glowed softly along the pool’s edge, and the pattern on the vaulted ceiling above mirrored the pool bottom precisely, looking like the ocean’s reflection in the sky. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass on one side, the sound of crashing waves echoed faintly.

When Jing Hong walked in, there was only one person swimming inside.

Standing on the “deck” were two couples, gazing at the person swimming.

Jing Hong walked over.

The person inside was doing the butterfly stroke. Jing Hong heard the man beside him exclaim in English, “God, his core strength is insane… He didn’t slow down at all in the second half…” He spoke in flawless American English, clearly a native speaker.

Just then, the swimmer reached the edge of the pool. He wasn’t wearing a swim cap, revealing a head of black hair. He held onto the poolside and shook his head. Jing Hong happened to be standing to his side, and looking at his side profile, Jing Hong found it unbelievable for a moment.

Zhou Chang?!

On his only vacation in years, he actually bumped into Zhou Chang?!

What kind of luck was this?

Inside the pool, Zhou Chang paddled lightly, found the steps, and walked up step by step.

Muscle by muscle emerged from the water, droplets cascading down and splashing around his feet.

Ignoring the feelings of her white boyfriend who came with her, the Caucasian woman beside Jing Hong stared at Zhou Chang’s figure and said, “He is so strong…!”

Zhou Chang ran a hand back through his hair as he walked over, visibly stunned when he saw Jing Hong as well.

Zhou Chang was bare-chested above the waist, wearing athletic swim trunks that fit tightly against his thighs.

His hair wasn’t dried yet and was slicked backward, giving off a different vibe than usual. His shoulders were broad and thick on both sides, his collarbones prominent. Droplets of water trickled down from his ends, pooling briefly at his collarbones before being pushed out by new drops, occasionally rolling down his smooth chest muscles in a flash. His chest was full and sculpted, openly exposed… His eight-pack abs were strikingly defined without a trace of excess fat, flanked by two sharp mermaid lines extending into his swim trunks. The thigh muscles revealed below the trunks were powerful and firm, brimming with strength. Through the trunks, a certain area was particularly eye-catching.

With magnificent muscle and bone structure, he was as agile and athletic as a panther.

Zhou Chang spoke with a playful undertone, “CEO Jing?”

“CEO Zhou.” Jing Hong offered a polite smile and nod. “I truly didn’t expect to run into you here.”

Zhou Chang said, “Fate.”

Jing Hong’s gaze lowered slightly, sweeping up and down over Zhou Chang, before casually asking, “Are you here on vacation as well, CEO Zhou?”

Zhou Chang chuckled softly and said, “Here for work.”

Jing Hong: “…”

“Still clocking in, actually.”

“…” Jing Hong shifted the topic, asking, “How’s the water temperature?”

“Not bad,” Zhou Chang said. “Quite comfortable. Planning on taking a swim too, CEO Jing?”

“Not today,” Jing Hong replied, having no intention of letting Zhou Chang see him half-naked. “Maybe another day.”

Zhou Chang caught on to Jing Hong’s thoughts and chuckled at himself self-deprecatingly, “Strange, isn’t it? Somehow, CEO Jing always catches me looking disheveled.”

Jing Hong forced his eyes to stay on the other man’s face and joked back, “I find it strange too. Somehow, CEO Zhou always shows up at my door to serve as eye candy.”

The two chatted for a bit longer before Jing Hong said, “Alright, go dry off, CEO Zhou. It gets chilly at night.”

Zhou Chang nodded and said, “I’m staying on the private island over there. What about you, CEO Jing?”

Jing Hong was wearing a T-shirt, looking fresh and neat, also quite different from his usual formal self. He said, “Same here, on the other private island.”

Zhou Chang gave Jing Hong another smiling look before turning to leave.

Jing Hong turned around and took another look.

Zhou Chang’s back muscles were remarkably impressive. As he held a towel to dry his hair, his opened arms caused his back muscles to retract slightly toward the center, forming a beautiful spinal groove. His shoulder blades stood out, his waist was narrow, and not a trace of flab was in sight.

Jing Hong admired the view for a moment before turning to leave.

That night, perhaps because he was finally idle and his brain didn’t know what to think about besides work, the image of Zhou Chang from earlier kept floating before Jing Hong’s eyes.

Front view, back view.

Slicked-back black hair, glistening wet skin.

An inexplicable restlessness lingered in his heart.

Also because he was idle, that night, Jing Hong once again…

With mental images flashing in his mind, the person in his thoughts still carried a formulaic, attractive face. But near the end, Jing Hong suddenly remembered that Zhou Chang was right on the neighboring island, in an identical room, lying on an identical king-sized bed, perhaps doing the exact same thing. A sudden wave of intense numbness washed over his lower abdomen.

Jing Hong’s mind went blank. Half in a daze over how he could have thought of him, he unconsciously used his long, slightly cool fingers to lightly stroke his lower abdomen, smearing it entirely.

The next morning, Jing Hong got up and handled a few work items in his office before calling the service team again to take a small boat to the main island once more.

Aside from the night pool, Jing Hong hadn’t explored anything else the previous evening.

There were quite a few tourists on the main island, mostly Westerners. The sea was an intense indigo blue, and the waves today were extraordinarily large, with several men and women surfing. They were tossed into midair by the waves before splashing down, striving to adapt, control, and wrestle with nature.

Most recreational activities took place on the side of the island where guests arrived—the jetty, thatched huts, lounge chairs, sun umbrellas, yachts, windsurf boards… Jing Hong watched for a while before following a sandy path through the trees to the other side of the island.

The other side was far quieter. Emerging from the woods, Jing Hong spotted a broad back from a distance.

He had actually chosen the same spot as Zhou Chang once again.

“…” Jing Hong walked over silently.

The waves today were exceptionally large and the sky was overcast. The seawater carried froth as wave after wave crashed onto the shore, the sea breeze thick with a salty, damp scent.

Jing Hong walked over and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Zhou Chang, saying, “CEO Zhou.”

Zhou Chang glanced sideways at him before returning his eyes to the sea, acknowledging, “CEO Jing.”

He looked different again compared to last night. Right now, Zhou Chang wore a black casual shirt with two buttons undone, revealing straight collarbones. The shirt featured intricate dark-gold patterns on both sides, giving him an air of effortless elegance.

Due to the strong wind, Zhou Chang’s hair and shirt were slightly windswept and messy—a look never seen at various internet summits in the past.

Jing Hong casually asked, “How long have you been watching?”

Zhou Chang replied just as casually, “For a while now.”

“The wind is quite strong today,” Jing Hong said. “Rather rare for this place.” Though it was December, the Maldives didn’t distinguish between winter and summer, maintaining a year-round temperature around 30°C.

“Yeah,” Zhou Chang said. “Strong wind, high waves. Hitting the shore wave after wave, it brings to mind that line of poetry: ‘Jagged rocks pierce the sky, terrifying waves crash against the shore, rolling up thousands of drifts of snow.’ Though there are no jagged rocks piercing the sky, the latter two lines certainly ring true.”

Jing Hong smiled and exposed his thought: “The line you really thought of wasn’t that one, but the next: ‘The mountains and rivers are like a painting; how many heroes emerged at that time.’“

Zhou Chang smiled as well, tacitly admitting it.

Jing Hong was reminded once again of Zhou Chang’s recent offensive and encirclement.

Because the assault was so sudden, Fanhai was completely unprepared—after all, Fanhai and Qinghui had maintained a balance of power, coexisting peacefully for years. Coupled with the fact that their product’s technology was indeed lagging behind, Qinghui managed to snatch a massive chunk of market share in the south in just a few weeks.

Jing Hong had learned his lesson: the “tacit understanding” between him and Zhou Chang was no true understanding—it was merely Zhou Chang biding his time.

After a moment, Zhou Chang asked, “How is Zhang Li adjusting?”

“Pretty well,” Jing Hong stopped thinking about work and said, “However, since we’re on vacation, let’s not talk about work, shall we?”

Zhou Chang agreed, “Apologies, I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

The two stood side by side, silently watching the sea.

After an unknown amount of time, the wind died down, the sun emerged, and the surface of the sea gradually turned calm.

It returned to the Maldives’ true appearance.

The water was crystal clear to the bottom. Looking out into the distance, varying shades of blue stretched directly to the horizon, where golden light shimmered along the skyline. Tropical fish of various species swam to and fro, many displaying vivid and colorful patterns.

Seeing this calm and tranquil scene, both of them felt their interest wane instead. Jing Hong lifted his feet to leave first, with Zhou Chang following behind him before catching up to walk alongside him.

Jing Hong noticed that along the way, Zhou Chang drew admiring glances from countless women.

Cutting back through the sandy path toward the dock, the two discovered a couple holding a wedding ceremony there today.

In the middle of the sea stood a pure white chapel—white walls, white floors, white chairs, and white wooden frames, resembling a paradise in the ocean. At that moment, the wooden bridge leading to the chapel was strewn with pink flower petals—both deep and pale pink—releasing a dizzyingly sweet fragrance in waves. On the wooden bridge, the bride and groom stood in the middle. Every few steps along the path between them and the chapel stood an exquisite floral archway, with long tendrils of wisteria hanging down and swaying gently in the wind.

Looking from afar, beautiful bouquets of flowers were placed or tied onto the wooden frames and chairs inside the chapel.

There weren’t many tourists on this island—after all, with only a dozen or so villas accommodating a handful of guests, it catered to a high-end luxury market. At this moment, however, a few tourists stood in scattered groups on the wooden bridge, keeping a respectful distance as they watched the wedding from afar. A few among them held up phones to record the magical moment.

“Since we have nothing better to do,” Zhou Chang gestured with a tilt of his chin and asked, “shall we go take a look?”

Jing Hong nodded, “Sure.”

And so they walked onto the wooden pier. As they stepped forward, the wooden bridge let out soft creaking sounds accompanied by the rhythm of the crashing waves.

After an indeterminate length of time, the chatter among the crowd gradually subsided. Even the children stopped their chatterbox babbling, and all the tourists turned to watch the couple.

The wedding was about to begin.

In an instant, a solemn and sacred atmosphere filled the air.

Zhou Chang seemed to want to say something. He opened his mouth and said, “CEO Jing…”

Feeling that this formal title ruined the romantic atmosphere, Jing Hong said, “It’s rare for us to take a vacation. Let’s drop the ‘CEO Jing’ stuff. Just call me ‘Jing Hong’.”

Zhou Chang paused for a moment. Total silence fell over them, as if the entire world had been shut out. The water was clear and the sand was fine, with only the gentle pushing of the ocean waves.

Immediately after, the prelude to the Wedding March from Act V of Mendelssohn’s famous A Midsummer Night’s Dream began to play.

Because they were far away, Jing Hong couldn’t hear it very clearly.

His ears were mostly filled with the wave after wave of ocean sounds, interspersed with the melody of the Wedding March drifting softly from afar.

The groom and bride walked toward the pastor, who was welcoming the newlyweds.

Amidst these sounds, he could feel Zhou Chang’s gaze shifting toward him. The other man looked into his eyes, his dark pupils locking onto him with deep intensity, as if floating threads had finally anchored into reality. Zhou Chang’s magnetic voice sounded crystal clear amidst the sound of waves and music as he said: “…Jing Hong.”