Perks

The moment the call connected, Shen Lian asked with a smile, "Miss me?"

"Did you move in?" Chu Yilan spoke almost at the same time.

Move? Shen Lian quickly realized that Chu Yilan meant whether he had moved into Zheng Ge's room. It looked like Sun Binghe had already filed his little report.

But Shen Lian still needed to play dumb for Master Chu's dignity. Otherwise, how could he explain knowing so quickly?

"Move? Move where?"

Chu Yilan paused on the other end. "I had some spare time just now, so I asked the person in charge at Xingkai how you were doing. Your manager said Zheng Ge gave you a hard time on set?"

[If this isn't giving him a hard time, what is?]

Sun Binghe had gone all out with his complaints.

[There are so many empty rooms, but he insisted on making Mr. Shen switch with him. And Zheng Ge stood there looking all innocent, like, 'Don't fight over me.' Boss, you should have seen his face.]

Chu Yilan knew that none of the special assistants around him particularly liked Zheng Ge. He had never thought much of it before, but now, seeing that line about looking innocent and saying "Don't fight over me," he found himself unable to argue.

It seemed... when he and Zhou Tangsi had clashed before, Zheng Ge had said much the same thing. "Calm down. Don't ruin your friendship over me."

Thinking it through now, their companies were competitors. Most of the time, it had nothing to do with Zheng Ge.

For a moment, even Master Chu was left speechless.

"Zheng Ge wasn't the one who suggested it. It was another lead." Shen Lian lay on the bed. "I didn't agree. That new assistant of mine... is seriously badass! He took them all on single-handedly. I didn't even get a chance to speak."

Chu Yilan typed a reply to Sun Binghe on his computer with one hand: [Double your year-end bonus.]

In the glow of his phone, Sun Binghe's eyes instantly lit up.

Shen Lian showed no mercy either. "But Zheng Ge did look pretty eager to switch with me."

That really wasn't an unfair accusation.

"Don't switch," Chu Yilan said firmly.

"Don't worry, I didn't." Shen Lian found Chu Yilan's refusal to admit his feelings adorable. He clearly cared, yet insisted on acting indifferent. "So what did my manager say? Did he praise me?"

Chu Yilan said, "He said you should stay humble, keep your cool, and keep working hard."

"Will do!"

Shen Lian didn't want to hang up, and Chu Yilan didn't seem inclined to either. They kept cycling through pointless little topics: were the lilies at home dying? Had the little purple chrysanthemums survived? Were the roses sent to the office lately fresh?

Chu Yilan talked about whatever he remembered and said he didn't know about the rest.

The rain grew louder again, pattering heavily against the glass with a muffled sound, gradually drawing a damp warmth called flirtation into the air.

At some point, Shen Lian had burrowed under the covers.

Chu Yilan's voice came through the phone, deep and magnetic, making it effortless for Shen Lian to picture him.

Shen Lian was a normal man.

And he liked Chu Yilan so much.

Shen Lian lay on his side, holding the phone against his ear. In barely half a minute, his affectionate eyes grew hazy and moist, budding with desire.

As Shen Lian's breathing gradually grew heavier, sounding as though he had buried his entire head beneath the covers, Chu Yilan's hand suddenly tightened on the desk. He finally realized something.

After a brief silence, Chu Yilan asked, "Shen Lian, what are you doing?"

Shen Lian's voice was a little high, yet soft. "Just talk to me about anything."

Chu Yilan felt as though someone had clubbed him over the head. Then he closed his eyes tightly.

Of all the times Shen Lian had said he liked him, nothing was as convincing as the desire in his voice now.

If he didn't like him, how could he feel this way?

"Shen Lian." Chu Yilan lit a cigarette, both annoyed and amused. He slowly breathed in and out, bewildered by this absurd turn of events. Shen Lian's restrained voice sounded lovely.

So lovely it was killing him.

"You've got some fucking nerve," Chu Yilan said.

Didn't you give me the confidence? Shen Lian thought.

He had even sent Sun Binghe to look after him. Surely a little pride wasn't too much?

With Chu Yilan away, Shen Lian could only imagine him, not touch him. He let out little dissatisfied whines.

"What's wrong?" Chu Yilan asked.

Shen Lian said, "I want to kiss you."

The man replied, "You can when you come back from filming."

Shen Lian immediately stopped whining. "You mean that?"

Chu Yilan didn't answer.

For now, he could only say something that explicit once.

But Shen Lian remembered it. Chuckling, he chatted with Chu Yilan a little longer to the accompaniment of the rain.

When the call ended, if the world had been one enormous storyboard, it would have shown Shen Lian and Chu Yilan getting up at the same time and heading straight for their bathrooms.

Shen Lian took off his underwear and enjoyed a hot shower. Poor Master Chu could only take a cold one.

With his year-end bonus doubled, Sun Binghe gained some understanding of how much Shen Lian mattered to his boss, and he became twice as attentive to him.

These days, making money was a miserable slog, but Sun Binghe earned this particular payout with ease.

Of the hundred or so people on set, not one was a match for him. He maintained a warm, gracious smile, but in practice, he crushed anyone who came at him.

Enjoying a rare spell of peace, Shen Lian chatted with Sun Binghe whenever he had a break, digging up every little preference of Chu Yilan's that he could. The two hit it off surprisingly well.

"With all the exercise I've been getting these past few days, my abs are even more defined," Shen Lian remarked.

As he spoke, his eyes shifted, and he told Sun Binghe, "Help me get a white shirt."

Sun Binghe looked knowing. "A little treat for your fans? You probably shouldn't. That's borderline thirst-trap content."

Shen Lian gave him a look that said, What are you thinking? "I never show my fans that stuff. It's a little treat for Master Chu."

Sun Binghe choked on his words. You really do dare to say anything, don't you?

But after giving it some thought, Sun Binghe found time that afternoon to buy one. No particular reason-he was a little curious whether his boss would like it.

It was a classic white shirt. After filming, Shen Lian showered and was just about to put it on when someone knocked on his door.

He opened it to find a crew member.

"Teacher Shen, Mr. Zhou sent more snacks for the crew. Teacher Zheng asked you to join everyone."

This was an obvious act of false goodwill. Shen Lian immediately refused. "No, thanks. I'm not hungry. You all enjoy them."

"You're... really not going to take a look?"

Shen Lian caught the excitement in the other's eyes, eager for a show, and chuckled. "Really. I'm tired. Thank you."

He shut the door, giving no further thought to Zheng Ge or Mr. Zhou.

At the same time, in the conference room on the nineteenth floor of Hengtai Group, Chu Yilan leaned back in his chair and listened to a dozen or so department heads trade barbs and shift blame over a misjudgment concerning a new partnership proposal. It wasn't actually that serious, but they all knew how President Chu operated. Whoever was too slow to escape tonight might well get flayed alive.

Even Yang Bin didn't dare make a sound, standing behind Chu Yilan like a well-behaved statue.

After listening for a while, Chu Yilan reached a decision. He suddenly gave a cold snort, and the noisy conference room instantly fell silent.

Just then, his phone buzzed twice.

Chu Yilan casually tapped it open.