Are You Satisfied, Tong Zhao?

Tong Zhao had no idea how long he had slept when the aroma of food woke him.

He was really hungry.

He slowly opened his eyes. Through the haze, he saw a figure in a black shirt standing by his bed, leaning over him slightly and stroking his forehead affectionately. "You're awake? Are you hungry? I made you black-bone chicken soup with red dates, deep-sea fish balls, and vegetable congee. They're all your favorites. Come on, get up and eat."

The haze before his eyes faded, bringing Shu Sizhuo's incomparably handsome face into focus. His memories came flooding back just as clearly.

Tong Zhao snapped awake. Burning with anger and embarrassment, he rolled out of bed, only to find his legs as weak as if their bones had been pulled out. If Shu Sizhuo hadn't caught him, he would have fallen to the floor.

Tong Zhao was shocked. What had Shu Sizhuo fucked him into, a grown man who stood 178 centimeters tall?

Shu Sizhuo held him up, then bent down, scooped him into his arms, and carried him toward the dining table.

Tong Zhao struggled fiercely. "Let go of me!"

The moment he spoke, Tong Zhao was stunned again.

His voice... how had it gotten so hoarse?

Shu Sizhuo glanced at him, set him down on a soft chair by the table, and smoothed his bangs. "Eat first, all right?"

Tong Zhao slowly turned to look at him, then slapped him without warning.

Tong Zhao really was starving. The slap looked forceful, but it actually landed as lightly as a feather.

Shu Sizhuo didn't move. His gaze settled heavily on Tong Zhao's face, and he pressed his tongue against his cheek. His voice was soft and cold. "If you don't want to eat, we can still have something else."

Tong Zhao's expression changed.

His legs were weak and his ass hurt. He must have been out of his mind with anger to strike him. But he really should put something in his stomach now, or he'd be powerless to fight back when that bastard put him through all sorts of things.

Eyes red-rimmed, Tong Zhao picked up his chopsticks and lowered his head to eat, his face full of anger. When he glimpsed the chain around his ankle, his eyes grew even redder.

Shu Sizhuo crouched beside him and watched. At the sight of the marks on his wrists and the countless marks covering him from the neck down, his heart softened and trembled.

He had wanted him for so long, yearned for him for so long, and finally had him. He was so overjoyed that he couldn't express what he felt.

He might have been a little rough, but he couldn't control himself. It was as though only by using all his strength could he press Tong Zhao into his very flesh and blood.

Only when he was fitted snugly inside Tong Zhao, holding him tightly in his arms, would the fear he had carried for years ease a little.

When Tong Zhao finished eating, Shu Sizhuo stood and thoughtfully handed him a glass of water, then wiped the corner of his mouth with a tissue.

Tong Zhao finally forced back the tears that had been lingering in his eyes. He looked at Shu Sizhuo, the corners of his eyes still red. "Can you let me go now?"

"What?" Shu Sizhuo sounded as though he hadn't heard clearly.

"I said, can you let me go now?" Tong Zhao raised his voice.

Tong Zhao's words were like a bucket of cold water, abruptly snapping Shu Sizhuo out of his self-absorption. As though he had heard the biggest joke in the world, he braced one hand on the table and tilted his head. "Tong Zhao, how could I possibly let you walk out of the cage I so carefully built for you?"

Tong Zhao's anger shot through the roof. He stood, leaned close to Shu Sizhuo, and shouted, "Do you even realize this is imprisonment? It's against the law! You're the man in charge of Shu Group. You still have to get married and have children someday. Why are you doing something so absurd?"

Shu Sizhuo gritted his teeth and seized his wrist, pulling him closer. "How funny, Tong Zhao. You're always saying I'll get married and have children, so why did you come after me eight years ago? Do you enjoy controlling other people's lives? You want them to be gay, so they're gay; you want them to be straight, so they're straight?"

The words caught in Tong Zhao's throat, leaving him speechless for a moment.

"You want me to get married? I won't. You want me to have children? I won't." Shu Sizhuo's voice was full of resentment. "What can you do about it?"

Tong Zhao's lips trembled, and a look of helpless panic flashed across his face. "Are you planning to keep lovers and play with men for the rest of your life, locking them all up one by one in these cages you supposedly built so carefully?"

Shu Sizhuo frowned.

As though something had occurred to him, Tong Zhao said, "You said yesterday that you'd locked up a lot of people. Was it in Wind House? Is Wind House a place you use specifically to imprison people? Or is this Wind House?"

A chill flashed through Shu Sizhuo's eyes. "You even know about Wind House? Did Boss Huang tell you?"

Tong Zhao's other hand gripped the back of the chair tightly behind him, and his head began to throb. "This is wrong... Shu Sizhuo, this is wrong... Let them go. You're breaking the law. You're breaking the law, do you understand?"

Besides, Wind House was no secret. Boss Huang knew about it, so there had to be other people who knew too. Shu Sizhuo was still young; he couldn't let something like this ruin his life...

Shu Sizhuo finally understood.

Ever since Tong Zhao had met Boss Huang and that knockoff, he had thought Shu Sizhuo was keeping men captive for his pleasure! And the lie Shu Sizhuo had told yesterday in a fit of anger had only confirmed it for him.

Explain?

He couldn't be bothered!

Tong Zhao didn't love him anyway, and even wanted him to marry and have children.

"Fine, I'll let them go," Shu Sizhuo said.

Tong Zhao froze. Shu Sizhuo's words made him breathe a sigh of relief, but they also cut into his heart like a knife.

"But I have a condition." Shu Sizhuo wrapped an arm around Tong Zhao's waist. "You have to take their place. You can't run away; you have to stay here and behave."

The color drained from Tong Zhao's lips.

Shu Sizhuo looked troubled as he traced his fingers back and forth over Tong Zhao's lower back. "Like you said, I'd be breaking the law if I locked up too many people. So how about I lock up just you? Tong Zhao, you wouldn't report me and send me to prison, would you?"

When that restless hand slipped under his waistband, Tong Zhao grabbed it. "Do you know what you're saying?" he asked in a trembling voice.

"Mm," Shu Sizhuo replied.

Tong Zhao opened his mouth, but after a long while all he managed was, "You're crazy."

"Mm." Shu Sizhuo lowered his head and kissed his lips. "I'm crazy."

Their soft lips moved against each other as Shu Sizhuo kissed him tenderly. "Well? Do you agree?"

Just as Shu Sizhuo had said, Tong Zhao didn't want him to break the law, nor could he report him and send him to prison.

Tong Zhao closed his eyes, intending to deal with the immediate problem first. "Then... let them go first."

Shu Sizhuo chuckled softly. "All right."

He leaned back against the table and drew Tong Zhao into his arms, about to kiss him, but Tong Zhao clapped a hand over his mouth. "Let them go first, and prove it to me."

Shu Sizhuo looked a little helpless, but nodded.

Tong Zhao let go and watched Shu Sizhuo take a phone from his pocket. It was different from an ordinary phone: solid black, thin, and compact.

Tong Zhao watched Shu Sizhuo dial a short number and turn on the speaker.

"Hello, President Shu."

Shu Sizhuo said, "Dismiss everyone at Wind House." After a pause, he added, "Make sure they get home safely."

On the other end of the line, his first assistant was utterly confused. Hadn't everyone been dismissed ages ago?

But when President Shu called him from this number, he couldn't ask any questions.

"Yes, President Shu. I'll take care of it right away."

After ending the call, Shu Sizhuo saw Tong Zhao still staring at the phone and said with a smile, "Don't get any ideas about this phone. It can only make internal calls."

He put the phone away, cupped the back of Tong Zhao's head with his large hand, and pulled him forcefully close, their breaths mingling. "Are you satisfied, Tong Zhao?"

With that, he kissed him deeply.