After exiting room 1620 and pulling the door shut, Xiang Zhen suddenly realized that by renting such a unit, Zhou Sicheng had to pay an extra month’s rent.

Xiang Zhen considered adding another source of income by delivering food in the evening, so he immediately registered as a rider.

The benefits were great: an extra 30 yuan reward for completing the first 20 orders! Xiang Zhen felt his feet itching to get started. Oh, he still needed to upload a health certificate; he couldn’t start delivering right away, but Xiang Zhen decided he would go get one as soon as he had free time.

That evening, after finishing an episode of a cartoon, Xiang Zhen sat staring at his phone. “Xiao Kui Bao” had been muted, and the short video app was uninstalled. It was the first time his “old man” hadn’t been home to sleep, and the 1.6-meter bed suddenly felt incredibly empty.

Zhou Sicheng had told him he had a meeting that night and even gave him the phone number of his colleague, Gao Ou, saying that if there was an emergency, he could contact him, as he was a good person who could relay messages.

Xiang Zhen didn’t have any emergencies; he just wanted to ask if Zhou Sicheng had eaten dinner. He hoped he wouldn’t starve himself because of the meeting and that he could sneak into the restroom to eat a biscuit.

He rubbed the edges of his phone, his slender, fair fingers as tender as scallion tips. He opened WeChat and gently tapped on Zhou Sicheng’s profile picture. A successful man must have a virtuous wife standing behind him, so he shouldn’t disturb Zhou Sicheng at a time like this.

Suddenly, his finger hit something, and a real estate agent’s video popped up, recommending a two-bedroom high-rise in Haishi: 70 square meters for a total of 2.87 million—an incredibly high cost-performance ratio.

It turned out WeChat had short videos inside too!

Xiang Zhen followed the agent. He and his old man were going to buy a house in the coming years, so he should start doing his homework now. Once he watched one real estate video, he was bombarded with countless others.

Xiang Zhen picked up a pen and began to study seriously. At first, he only recorded “old, dilapidated, and small” units under one million, but gradually, he dared to record two-million-yuan listings, and by the end, he was looking at everything under three million. These owners were “cutting their own flesh” (dropping prices) by two million just to sell; by just looking at them, he felt like he was saving two million! Humans were just too rich; he wouldn’t be able to earn two million in his entire life.

Thankfully, his old man was handsome and level-headed, taking out a loan for a car instead of a house. Otherwise, Xiang Zhen would have to spend his whole life helping Zhou Sicheng pay off debt.

Xiang Zhen lay on the bed, his legs kicking up, as slender and charming as a mermaid’s tail. He recorded dense notes on dozens of listings, refusing anything without a balcony. If he and his old man could live in one of these in the future, Xiang Zhen didn’t know how happy he would be. He and his old man would share one room, grow sunflowers on the balcony, install a big TV in the living room, and have an extra room for his old man to use as a “secret base,” moving the facilities from 1620 inside.

Xiang Zhen was full of energy as he swiped to the next video. But the style changed completely: a person with face-enhancing filters was speaking, with a bookshelf filled with hardcover editions in the background. Xiang Zhen saw that Yu Yueyue had liked this video, which was why it had been pushed to him.

[A fan private-messaged me saying her boyfriend likes to lead and control, has a muscular build, and occasionally gives off a fierce look. She asked me how to determine if this is an abusive personality or an ‘S’ personality. Let ‘Sister Li’ do an episode to properly explain the difference between abuse and ‘S’.]

Hmm, this voice! Although it was slightly altered, Xiang Zhen recognized the cadence immediately—it was “Sister Wang”! He didn’t understand why Sister Wang had become “Sister Li.”

Xiang Zhen clicked on Sister Li’s homepage and saw a bio: Can two men not manage a marriage?

Xiang Zhen was so shocked his hair stood on end. It turned out he had gone to the wrong place before; Sister Wang taught heterosexual couples how to be perfect wives, but Sister Li was his true marriage counselor.

Xiang Zhen decisively hit “Follow” and clicked on the latest video, unable to wait. He had vaguely heard “leading, control, muscles, fierce” earlier—it sounded a lot like his old man. When he heard the word “abuse,” Xiang Zhen was startled. He absolutely hadn’t linked that word to Zhou Sicheng.

Excluding abuse, his old man must definitely be an “S”! Xiang Zhen didn’t understand what an S was, but his old man must be an S—the kind of rare and handsome “S” in video games. Sure enough, this was the true home base for gay men; he had learned so much new knowledge.

Sister Li: “Abuse and S, while both involving a desire for control and dominance, are fundamentally different. Let’s start with a self-check list.”

Sister Li: “Is your boyfriend gentle and home-oriented off the bed? Does he respect you? Does he listen to your opinions?”

Xiang Zhen thought: His old man is very home-oriented, cooks, and hands over his paycheck. As long as he nudges him a bit, he’ll listen to him and buy small cakes.

Sister Li: “Does the violent behavior extend off the bed? Not even once is allowed.”

Xiang Zhen: No, his old man never hits him off the bed.

Sister Li: “Do you have a safety word in bed? Is it consensual every time? Does he stop when you tell him to? Does he violently slap your head and choke your neck, or does he use some props to enhance the atmosphere?”

Props? That matched! Zhou Sicheng did have a lot of props. How could Zhou Sicheng ever slap his head or choke his neck? Zhou Sicheng just liked to touch his head and sniff his nape.

Sister Li: “Abuse is impulsive and hurtful, while an S will make preparations, won’t cause physical harm, will perform ‘aftercare,’ and will constantly watch your reactions. Simply put, S carries a bit of a professional service nature.”

Xiang Zhen remembered smelling disinfectant in 1620. Service nature? Customer service and ride-sharing were both service industries; he and his old man were peers!

…

At closing time, the apartment building was ablaze with lights.

In Room 1603, Shi Ting stood guard, protecting his employer’s partner. Xiang Zhen lived a two-point-one-line life, and besides being careful on the commute, he didn’t do anything else, unlike some young people who loved clubbing.

In Room 1620, Ye Chuan was doing lat pulldowns in the fourth set. After finishing each piece of equipment, he would wipe it down with a towel soaked in hypochlorous acid disinfectant. General Manager Zhou had been kind enough to lend them the gym, and disinfecting it immediately after use was a basic trait of a decent human being.

In Room 1602, Xiang Zhen sat cross-legged, listening to Sister Li’s analysis with complete focus.

Sister Li: “A typical characteristic of an abusive man is suppression, belittling, and bullying. An S man is the exact opposite; he is the encouraging type. His frequent phrases are: [Baby, you’re doing great], [Hold on a little longer], [You deserve my reward]. You will find pleasure during the process.”

Xiang Zhen stroked his chin. Zhou Sicheng didn’t often encourage him, but he did reward him with cakes! He felt very pleased!

Sister Li: “I’ve explained it very thoroughly, right?”

Xiang Zhen nodded; he understood everything perfectly.

Sister Li: “Abuse is an illness, a personality defect. S is a fetish. Between lovers, a truly self-controlled S will cherish the other party, restrain themselves, and for fear of scaring their lover, might even hide their special fetish for a lifetime.”

Xiang Zhen felt enlightened. He finally understood why Zhou Sicheng rented a room behind his back to collect props. If he hadn’t bumped into the discovery, Zhou Sicheng might have hidden his fetish for his whole life.

Zhou Sicheng must have found it difficult to talk about it too, so he just let him see it without offering any explanation. His old man loved him too much.

On the night of May 16th, at 8:13:14 PM, Zhou Sicheng was diagnosed as an “S” on the internet.

Sister Li: “Finally, I want to say one thing: you must, must be wary of people using the name of ‘S|M’ to commit domestic violence! Love will make an S gentle, but love cannot change an abusive man; it will only make him more aggressive. Remember, the National Anti-Domestic Violence Women’s Federation Hotline is 12338. Oh, right, gay men don’t have marriage certificates, so just call the police directly.”

Sister Li’s video was too valuable. Xiang Zhen wanted to like, save, and comment to increase its popularity, but then he thought: his colleague Yu Yueyue had liked it too. If she saw his comment, Zhou Sicheng’s hard-hidden fetish would be exposed.

“Sorry, Sister Li,” Xiang Zhen apologized to her in his heart.

At nine o’clock, Zhou Sicheng’s meeting should have ended. Xiang Zhen missed him at home.

Zhou Sicheng was on the shuttle bus back to the hotel, thinking about calling Xiang Zhen, when his phone received a text from him first.

[Old man, it’s so dark at home without you.]

Zhou Sicheng’s breath hitched. Xiang Zhen was just too spoiled; it had only been one night, and the power wasn’t out—why was it so dark? He couldn’t tell if it was cowardice or clinginess. What would he do in the future? He couldn’t bring him along every time he went on a business trip.

Zhou Sicheng called back: “Xiang Zhen.”

Xiang Zhen was almost asleep, but his voice became cheerful when he heard his old man’s voice: “Old man!”

Zhou Sicheng: “Mm.”

Xiang Zhen waited, but the next sentence didn’t come. He rested his head on the pillow his old man had used and felt he had become a bit smarter. With a flash of intuition, he took the initiative: “Old man, I went to 1620 today.”

Zhou Sicheng wanted to skip this topic. Fitness wasn’t something shameful, but it made him look like he was overly fond of male competition—it wasn’t worth it, it wasn’t rational.

Xiang Zhen: “Old man, I understand your intentions. You treat me so well.”

Zhou Sicheng thought: Of course, who else would be as good to you as I am? Although he knew Xiang Zhen was likely acting spoiled, he still instructed: “Don’t worry about the two yuan in electricity fees; turn on all the lights in the house.”

Xiang Zhen: “Old man, you are so kind to me.”

Even though there were only two lights in the whole house—one in the living room and one in the bathroom. But the “darkness” he spoke of wasn’t that kind of dark; it was the darkness because his Sun God wasn’t at home.

Zhou Sicheng: “Eat well. I’m earning money now. I’ve opened a ‘Close Pay’ for you. It’s tied to my credit card. You need to spend three… three thousand yuan a month to waive the annual fee, and the points can be exchanged for milk tea vouchers.”

Zhou Sicheng had originally intended to say thirty thousand, but worried that Xiang Zhen might get anxious and try to “cash out” to meet the target, only to get scammed, he said three thousand instead.

Xiang Zhen worked hard to help his old man save on the annual fee: “Really! Then starting tomorrow, I’ll take delivery orders for my colleagues!”

Zhou Sicheng: “… Go to sleep early.”

Xiang Zhen: “Okay, old man, I’m almost asleep already.”

Liar.

Zhou Sicheng hung up the phone and closed his eyes on the five-star hotel’s luxury bed. He couldn’t even sleep; how could Xiang Zhen be sleeping so soundly?

When he closed his eyes, he saw the bodyguard’s reports: Xiang Zhen eating plain steamed buns in a dim wet market, yet speaking to him in a voice that was still cheerful and sunny, making Zhou Sicheng feel dark and despicable.

Ding, ding. A WeChat message sounded. Zhou Sicheng picked it up and saw Xiang Zhen had sent a message.

[Old man, I will accommodate all your dark sides.]

It was random and out of the blue, yet it perfectly matched Zhou Sicheng’s psychological needs at that moment. Drip. Like a drop of rain falling onto parched earth, the cracks in his heart began to heal.

Zhou Sicheng thought: When the “Zhou Sicheng” mask is stripped away, I will surely compensate Xiang Zhen a thousand, ten thousand times over. I will never let Xiang Zhen suffer in vain during this time.

If I have a trillion, I will let Xiang Zhen have a trillion.

Zhou Sicheng replied: [Why do you say that?]

Half an hour later, Xiang Zhen hadn’t replied. An hour later, still no reply. Zhou Sicheng had to confirm that this wife, who never let his phone leave his hand, was already asleep, and that he could sleep soundly without him.

He decided to order a monitoring wristband online and ship it to Xiang Zhen, linking the sleep data to his phone so he wouldn’t have to wait for a sleeping person next time.

The next day, Xiang Zhen woke up, saw Zhou Sicheng’s message, and hurriedly replied: [Nothing, I just read a psychology book. We don’t have to stay perfect in front of each other.]

For the next two days, Xiang Zhen worked with enthusiasm because he needed to meet the credit card quota for his old man. He was very popular in the office because he was cheerful and loved a challenge. He volunteered for difficult sales and after-sales issues: “Let me do it, because I won’t get breast nodules.”

He was like a potted sunflower in the office, bright petals planted here for a while and then there, inviting colleagues to place orders through his link and collecting transfers without a single cent missing or extra.

One hundred yuan earned today!

Supervisor: “Xiang Zhen.”

Xiang Zhen: “Supervisor, do you want to order something too?”

The supervisor spat out a wolfberry peel and said meaningfully: “Little Zhen, dye that yellow hair back later.”

He didn’t know where Xiang Zhen dyed his hair, but it was too dazzling. No matter the lighting in the office in the morning or at dusk, Xiang Zhen’s yellow hair was particularly vivid on camera; anyone watching the feed had to notice him first. The supervisor shook his head; he was about to retire, and managing personnel was just lip service. The new “young master” was different—he’d returned from millions spent on education abroad and brought a new management style: “cost reduction and efficiency” on his lips, “AI empowerment” in his heart. It was likely that in a while, there would be a major round of layoffs, and the customer service department would be the first to bear the brunt. Some employees might be merged into other departments, but Xiang Zhen had yellow hair, was obviously goofing off, and was still in his probationary period—if they didn’t lay him off, who would?

Xiang Zhen touched his hair; he didn’t want to dye it black. It had a chemical smell, and Zhou Sicheng liked to hold him and sniff his hair—he’d get poisoned if he did that too much.

Xiang Zhen: “Supervisor, I have no money.”

The supervisor was choked by his reply: “You’ll have money to touch up the roots when you get your salary!”

Don’t think he was an old fuddy-duddy; his daughter loved to dye her hair pink or blue, and the black roots always popped up after a week. He told her over-dyeing was bad for the scalp, but she never listened.

Xiang Zhen: “I really have no money, I haven’t received my salary yet.”

Supervisor: “The last commission—”

Xiang Zhen: “I’m saving it to buy a house.”

Supervisor: “Be careful you’re laid off before you even buy the house.”

There were no airtight walls in the world; everyone had vaguely heard that the young master wanted to lay people off. As soon as the supervisor brought it up, Yu Yueyue started firing off.

“What era is this? Just having a factory and you call yourself a young master? If it weren’t for the relaxed atmosphere here, who would work for three thousand a month? Getting breast pains from anger all day long. A shameless nepotism hire, no capitalist brain, just capitalist airs.”

Xiang Zhen nodded; capitalists were indeed too hateful.

Once the nepotism hire took over, the atmosphere changed, and there was no reason to stay. Liu Xiaofang said: “Yueyue and I are sending out resumes. If we leave, we leave together.”

Xiang Zhen realized belatedly that the “AI” Zhou Sicheng mentioned was his rival—it meant he was going to lose his job! Yu Yueyue firmly believed that customer service was just a transition for Xiang Zhen and that he should look for a high-paying job: “Zhenzhen, what are your thoughts for your next job? I heard the Operations Department supervisor is from your hometown. Do you want to be a streamer?”

Xiang Zhen: “How do you know Zhigge is from my hometown?”

Yu Yueyue: “The supervisor told me.”

Xiang Zhen had experience with losing his job. Zhou Sicheng lost his job and became a ride-share driver, and if he lost his job, he could deliver food. Zhou Sicheng had to take a loan to buy a BYD, but he only needed his two legs! Delivering food was zero-cost; he didn’t have to spend three thousand on an e-bike.

Yu Yueyue: “What are you going to do?”

Xiang Zhen was full of ambition: “Deliver food.”

Yu Yueyue: “…”

So disappointed. Did he never think about relying on his looks to make a living?

Thinking that she was quitting anyway, Yu Yueyue didn’t care about the damn cameras and directly swiped through her phone, seeing a piece of news:

[Today’s news: The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security held a seminar on employment stability with major internet companies. At the meeting, the president of ‘Zhou Er Fu Shi’ took the lead in promising no layoffs and pledged to add 6,000 campus recruitment positions this year.]

The news camera captured the scene as people were leaving. The editor was standing in the middle, occupying most of the frame. Behind him, Zhou Sicheng’s figure flashed by.

Yu Yueyue commented: “This Mr. Zhou has some class, that back view is so handsome. Zhenzhen, come look—”

Yu Yueyue’s tea-room news was very well-informed. She didn’t think like the supervisor, who believed Xiang Zhen would be laid off; on the contrary, Xiang Zhen was bright and dazzling. The “young master” was currently ignoring him, but deep down, he had probably noticed him long ago. Yu Yueyue was worried Xiang Zhen would be seduced by such a playboy, so she wanted to drag him to see a truly handsome and wealthy entrepreneur to improve his aesthetic standards.

“Hey, hey, hey! Still chatting! There’s a camera overhead!” The supervisor killed the vibe again. “Don’t worry, you guys won’t be laid off before the 618 promotion.”

Yu Yueyue put down her phone. Let them go bankrupt. It would be best if the young master didn’t stir up trouble; otherwise, she would lead Xiang Zhen and Liu Xiaofang to run away before the 618 promotion.

…

On the third day of his business trip, Zhou Sicheng walked out of the conference hall and took out his silenced phone. Ding, ding, ding—a screen full of consumption information popped up.

-17.2

-12.5

-38.8

…

Among the many small expenditures, he couldn’t even tell which one was his wife’s.

[Zhou Sicheng: What did you eat?]

[Xiang Zhen: 38.8!]

Zhou Sicheng didn’t believe it.

Secretary Gao was waiting at the door and greeted him quickly: “President Zhou, the flight takes off in two hours; if we leave now, we’ll make it.”

Today was the World Artificial Intelligence Development and Application Summit held in a Midwestern city. As the co-organizer and sponsor, Zhou Er Fu Shi’s technical team had brought the physical Xiao Kui Bao for its first public appearance. Zhou Sicheng would interact with Xiao Kui Bao in person today.

Zhou Sicheng looked troubled, showing distrust in his own company’s product for the first time.

Secretary Gao observed his expression. Every time he hears about a flight, he’s like this. Could he really have a phobia of flying? That made sense; Zhou Sicheng’s parents died in a plane crash, leaving nothing behind. After so many years, Zhou Sicheng had finally come to his senses and, having a lover now, cherished life even more. It was understandable that he didn’t like flying.

“President Zhou, shall we switch to high-speed rail? It only takes 7.5 hours.” Although it was a bit boring, chatting with his wife would make the time go by faster.

Zhou Sicheng stared at him: “No need.”

Did he want to receive another divorce message on a plane?

Without Xiao Kui Bao causing trouble, the misunderstanding between him and Xiang Zhen had been resolved.