A little ticklish.

"President Bo, are you all right?"

The voice, somewhere between a man's and a boy's, carried concern. Even the worry in his eyes seemed genuine.

Ever since Bo Lin had slept with this man through a bizarre twist of fate, the two of them seemed to have become entangled.

Wherever Bo Lin went, he ran into him.

He was Xie Zhiwei's lover, an art teacher at Fanling, and a bartender at Lu Zexi's bar.

And today, he was involved with Qin Ci, too.

That night?

What had Hua Jian and Qin Ci done that night?

Was it just like the night Hua Jian had spent with him at the Haiping Hotel?

Yet Hua Jian didn't remember him at all, while he still remembered Qin Ci.

So to Hua Jian, that night had been so ordinary he could casually forget it.

Walking into the wrong room and spending the night with a stranger.

He hadn't even bothered to remember that stranger's face...

An uncontrollable sense of disgust and irritation welled up inside Bo Lin.

Yet the man before him now had clear, innocent eyes and a concerned tone.

He lowered his eyelids and stopped looking at him.

Hua Jian frowned. He didn't want to provoke a powerful man who kept such a low profile.

So when Bo Lin didn't answer, he tactfully straightened up and went off to do something else.

Bo Lin tipped his head back and drained the glass. Once the burning liquor was in his stomach, his expression had returned to normal.

Hua Jian glanced up, catching one last glimpse of Bo Lin's back as he headed upstairs.

"Phew. They're finally all gone."

Hua Jian turned his gaze to the other side, where Shu Yao had already disappeared.

Just then, faint sounds came from a stall in the bar's first-floor restroom.

UP was lavishly decorated, and its restrooms were always scented with expensive imported incense.

It was a heavy yet intoxicating fragrance.

Dizzy and with his eyes closed, Shu Yao was held upright by a man who rubbed and kneaded his body.

"Has Qin Ci touched you these past few days?" The man's voice was low, husky, and dangerous. His hand touched somewhere, and Shu Yao's eyes flew open as he said in panic, "Don't."

"You haven't answered me. Has he touched you?"

"No, he really hasn't. Cui Zhao, let go of me! If those people can't find me, they'll give me trouble again."

Cui Zhao, who should have been banished to the north, had actually appeared in the Imperial Capital.

He applied a little pressure with his hand, and the focus Shu Yao had just managed to gather scattered again.

After an unknown stretch of time, Shu Yao opened his eyes, then lowered them to hide the humiliation and hatred in them.

Cui Zhao thought the little thing must be feeling shy.

"There's a new car outside. Drive it away when you have time. Didn't you complain that the car the Shu Family gave you wasn't good enough?"

Shu Yao looked up at him obediently. "Thank you for still thinking of me."

Cui Zhao's brow twitched. He abruptly bent down and rasped, "Look at me like that again, and I'll fuck you to death right here!"

Shu Yao flushed and hurriedly lowered his eyes. Watching his fluttering lashes, Cui Zhao reluctantly withdrew his hand.

"I came back in secret, so don't let anything slip to Qin Ci. Also, there's a nightclub in West City called Moyan. Qin Ci always wants to have his fill when he goes drinking. Take him there later."

Shu Yao paused. Slowly standing up, he asked quietly, "Is there something special about that place?"

"Be good and do as you're told," Cui Zhao said casually. "Don't ask questions you shouldn't."

Shu Yao immediately fell silent.

At the bar counter not far from the restroom, Hua Jian was as bored as an NPC in this world.

No one had ordered bottles through him today. They had all gone to celebrate that young master from the Bian Family's birthday. How dull.

"Xiao Jian, if you're not busy, go up to the second floor. President Lu has guests in his room. Head over there."

Just before the end of his shift, Manager Liu came over with another assignment.

Andy was also a bartender. His eyes immediately lit up at Manager Liu's words. "Manager Liu, let me go. Xiao Jian's been busy all night. Let him have a rest."

As he spoke, he made sure to glance at Hua Jian, his tone threatening. "Right, Xiao Jian?"

Ever since Hua Jian arrived, Andy had become completely invisible.

Forget customers ordering bottles through him-he wasn't even getting tips anymore.

Hua Jian nodded. "Manager Liu, I think Andy has a very good point."

Manager Liu frowned at the two of them, then quickly said, "Andy, then. Hurry up. Don't keep the guests waiting."

Andy was ecstatic. Before leaving, he shot Hua Jian another glare. "At least you know what's good for you."

Hua Jian smiled brightly. "Take care, Andy."

He couldn't be bothered to mix drinks for the men in Shu Yao's harem.

But where had Shu Yao gone off to?

As he wondered, Hua Jian's languid gaze suddenly froze.

Was that Cui Zhao coming toward him?

Hadn't Cui Chengming banished him from the Imperial Capital? Why was he here?

His expression soon shifted slightly as he remembered a plot point he had overlooked.

On UP's second floor.

Lu Zexi had forced several glasses of liquor on Qin Ci, whose face was practically turning green.

It wasn't that he couldn't drink. No one had ever dared to "urge" him to drink like this!

"Young Master Lu, I've just been injured. I can't drink this much."

"Oh, what's there to worry about? Come on, try this. It's good stuff Shen Mo brought back."

That bastard Lu Zexi had poured enough drinks to cover the table. Even the normally fearless Qin Ci was starting to feel intimidated.

Just then, a knock came at the door.

"Young masters, the bartender is here."

Shen Mo quickly sat up straight, his eyes lighting up. "That gorgeous guy from downstairs? Come in!"

Lu Zexi set down the glass he had just raised and looked toward the door with a slightly odd expression.

Qin Ci sighed in relief and undid two buttons.

Fuck. If he weren't showing Bo Lin and Shen Mo some respect, he'd kill that spoiled brat Lu Zexi!

Manager Liu pushed the door open and entered, drawing several excited or curious looks.

"Who's this?" Shen Mo looked disappointed. "Where's that gorgeous guy from downstairs?"

At his question, Bo Lin lifted his eyes and looked over. He paused when he saw Andy.

Manager Liu inwardly cursed and hurried to explain, "Sorry, gentlemen. Xiao Jian is still a student, and his shift is ending."

Shen Mo instantly lost interest.

While they were talking, Xue Pan's phone vibrated in the corner.

[Come out. I'm in the second-floor restroom.]

Xue Pan's expression shifted slightly. He glanced up at the tipsy young masters and, seeing that no one was paying attention to him, quietly slipped out.

"Xue Pan." Leaning beside the sink, Hua Jian got straight to the point. "Is Qin Ci drunk?"

Xue Pan frowned. "Almost. What happened?"

"I just saw Cui Zhao on the first floor."

"Impossible. Jiang Yueming said he was sent away..."

Hua Jian immediately said, "It's not impossible. Cui Zhao isn't as simple as Jiang Yueming and Qin Ci think."

Fuck. With brains as simple as Qin Ci's and Jiang Yueming's, they wouldn't even know how Cui Zhao got them killed.

Something stirred in Xue Pan's mind.

Then he heard Hua Jian continue inwardly, Whatever happens, I can't let Shu Yao take Qin Ci to that nightclub in West City today.

"Want another chance to strike it filthy rich?"

Bo Lin had just entered the restroom when he heard Hua Jian say this.

The sound of leather shoes against the floor suddenly broke the silence. Hua Jian couldn't help looking back, meeting Bo Lin's gaze head-on.

Bo Lin didn't hold his gaze. Looking straight ahead, he walked past the two of them and entered a stall.

When Bo Lin emerged again, the restroom was empty. He washed his hands expressionlessly.

"President Bo!" He startled violently and immediately turned around.

Hua Jian abruptly paused. Bo Lin was deathly pale, making the dark circles beneath his eyes look even worse.

Only then did Hua Jian realize he had frightened him.

"It's me, Xiao Jian, the bartender at UP. President Lu asked me to drive you home."

The other men who hadn't been drinking had all been called away by Young Master Bian's people to serve as drivers. Only Hua Jian, who was about to get off work, remained.

Bo Lin's heart was pounding fiercely. Before he realized it, he had nodded at Hua Jian.

On the way home, Bo Lin gazed out the window through half-closed eyes. It was very quiet beside him. Even the boy who loved making snarky comments in his head had stopped talking.

Apparently, it was because he was too boring.

After a long while, he asked flatly, "You know Qin Ci?"

Hua Jian froze, then said, "Are you asking me, President Bo? I don't know Young Master Qin."

He was lying. Bo Lin closed his eyes mockingly and said nothing more.

Nobody at UP knows I tune Qin Ci's race car as a side job. Boss Bo must have seen that bastard Qin Ci come over to me downstairs earlier.

Bo Lin's eyes suddenly opened.

I wonder if Xue Pan can get Qin Ci home safely. Cui Zhao is rotten to the core. He wants to drag Qin Ci down and smear the Qin Family's old man. He seems to be working for the Qin Family's political enemies, but he's actually trying to make the Qin Family turn against the Shen Family's eldest branch.

Ugh, my life is so hard. If the Shen Family's second branch weren't trying to hurt Xie Zhiwei, I really couldn't be bothered with any of this.

Bo Lin couldn't hold his liquor particularly well. In a bad mood today, he had drunk a few extra glasses. Now the alcohol had gone to his head, leaving him half drunk.

"Put on some music." His voice was low and husky.

Soft piano music soon filled the car.

Good. He didn't want to hear Xie Zhiwei's name in Hua Jian's thoughts again.

He soon drifted into a light sleep, missing Hua Jian's little inward mutter.

Boss Bo's drunken voice makes me feel so strange, like something just scratched at my heart.

A little ticklish.