Give me back my youth!

Ever since his birthday, Qi Su hadn't seen Cheng Yue. Eventually, his love of gossip got the better of him. Desperate to know what had happened between Cheng Yue and Fang Zhiyou, he bombarded him with calls.

Cheng Yue got so fed up that he promptly blacklisted him.

Unexpectedly, after holding out for half a month, the guy finally lost patience. He worked out Cheng Yue's shift schedule and ambushed him on a day he finished early.

"Cut the crap. Get in!"

Before it was even dark, Cheng Yue had been "abducted" to a barbecue place, where several familiar faces sat around a plastic table outside.

"Cheng, you bastard, you finally showed your face."

Before his butt even hit the chair, everyone started laying into him, talking over one another. Cheng Yue knew perfectly well what they were like and let them tease him without batting an eye.

The six of them had been friends since college. Apart from the fat guy who had just spoken, the eldest in their dorm, and Qi Su, who ranked third, who were both Capital City natives, the others were all talented enough to have made lives for themselves in Capital City.

The curtain of daylight slowly drew closed, and the barbecue restaurant's sign glowed in a riot of colors. After several rounds of drinks, it was time for a heart-to-heart.

The eldest said earnestly, "Cheng, don't lose heart. If this one won't behave, we'll find you another. There are plenty of men out there!"

Cheng Yue didn't need to think to know that bigmouth Qi Su had been spreading his business around. He shot him a murderous glare. He hadn't forgotten what the guy had done.

Qi Su held up a plate of edamame, bewildered. "...Want some?"

Cheng Yue looked away in disgust, mentally pummeling him eighteen hundred times.

They took turns comforting him. To help him regain his confidence, they even reopened their own old wounds, recounting their romantic histories one by one.

Listening to them only made Cheng Yue feel more aggrieved. Sure, breaking up hurt, but what upset him far more was that he'd somehow lost his virginity without even knowing what was happening!

He couldn't exactly tell them that, so all he could do was miserably fill his belly with booze.

Seeing him get more worked up the more they tried to console him, the eldest and the others exchanged glances and dared not say anything more. They merely remarked that as long as he was still standing, there would always be another chance.

Only Qi Su sat off to the side, looking as though he had something to say but couldn't bring himself to say it.

With the moon high overhead, it was time to call it a night. Qi Su hadn't drunk much and got everyone into their cars one by one. Only Cheng Yue remained at the table, idly cracking open boiled peanuts and eating them.

After watching the hired driver pull away safely, Qi Su dashed back. "Forgot to ask. Did that thing last time actually work out?"

He just had to touch a sore spot-and the sorest one of all.

Cheng Yue picked up a peanut and put it in his mouth, shell and all, crunching it loudly as he fixed Qi Su with a dark stare. "What do you think?"

An inexplicable shiver ran through Qi Su. He ventured cautiously, "It... worked out, I guess?"

Cheng Yue flashed him a sinister grin. "Weren't you the one who arranged the guy? How could you not know whether it worked out?"

Qi Su really didn't know. He'd made the arrangements through a friend, and the other party had only said everything was ready, sent him a hotel address, and told them to collect the key card at the front desk.

Neither side had given him any feedback afterward, so he had no idea how his buddy's night had actually ended.

In fact, Cheng Yue had realized that very day that he must have gone to the wrong room. Then lust had gone to his head, and he'd charged blindly inside, personally delivering his own ass to the door.

But he couldn't for the life of him understand why Ji Huaijin, who looked so respectable, couldn't have pushed him out and handed him over to the cops.

How could he have accepted it as though it were perfectly natural and taken Cheng Yue's virginity without his consent?!

"This isn't over!"

Cheng Yue slammed the beer bottle onto the table, his hazy eyes filled with determination.

Qi Su trembled, utterly at a loss. "Cheng, y-you need to calm down."

He still hadn't figured out what had happened, but Cheng Yue's murderous expression sent chills down his spine.

"Fine! I'll calm down!"

Cheng Yue answered calmly as he picked up his jacket.

Qi Su hurried to his feet. "What are you going to do?"

"Third Brother." Cheng Yue placed both hands on his shoulders, a strange smile curling his lips. "It's getting late. Go home, or your wife will worry."

Qi Su let out an "Ah," then asked, "What about you?"

Cheng Yue turned up his collar, looking forlorn.

"I'll enjoy the night breeze a little longer, then leave."

Qi Su: "..."

After all that banging and crashing, you're just kicking me out?

Late that quiet night, Ji Huaijin finished his video conference, got up to shower, then poured himself a glass of red wine.

Only a few small wall lamps were lit in the spacious living room. Their faint light seemed to veil the room in shadow. A breeze slipped through the gap in the window, gently stirring the sheer curtains.

Ji Huaijin stood in the moonlight with his wineglass in hand. He disliked overly bright colors, so there was hardly a pure-white decoration anywhere in the room.

A black coffee table, a dark-gray sofa, geometric wallpaper, a deep-brown wine cabinet-even the sheer curtains that screened out the sun were a pale gray.

It was worlds apart from the gentle, refined image he presented to others.

The doorbell rang abruptly.

An almost imperceptible crease formed between Ji Huaijin's brows. He set his wineglass on the marble tabletop with a clink, walked unhurriedly to the door, and pressed the answer button.

"Ji Huaijin, open the door!"

That familiar face appeared on the monitor. Surprise flashed through Ji Huaijin before he pressed the unlock button, instantly opening the building's entrance downstairs.

The same nineteenth floor, the same speed. When the elevator doors opened, Ji Huaijin was leaning against the entryway cabinet in a dark-blue robe, perfectly composed.

The resentment Cheng Yue had stored up all evening erupted in an instant. "You bastard! Give me back my youth! Give me back my pure, untouched innocence!"

Understanding dawned on Ji Huaijin. He raised his eyebrows, his meaning unreadable. "But as I recall, you were the one who made the first move."

He had knocked on the door, thrown his arms around Ji Huaijin, and said he wanted them to do something fun together-all of his own accord.

The innocent look on his face infuriated Cheng Yue. He lunged straight at him, successfully delivering himself into the enemy's arms once again.

Ji Huaijin caught him swiftly, his right hand settling naturally on Cheng Yue's waist. They were nearly the same height, and the distance between them vanished in an instant. Their breaths mingled, along with the scent of wine beneath their noses.

There was no telling whose it was.

Ji Huaijin leaned closer almost imperceptibly, sniffing lightly near his lips. "Drunk again?"

That "again" was rather telling. Unfortunately, Cheng Yue was so intent on reclaiming everything he'd lost that he failed to notice it-or that the distance between them had already entered dangerous territory.

"Don't change the subject! Fine, even if I made the first move, does that give you a reason to take advantage of me?!"

He could have pushed him away, handed him over to the government, to the Party. He was willing to face the full force of the law!

The more he thought about it, the more miserable he became. Clutching Ji Huaijin's collar, Cheng Yue demanded with absolute conviction, "I don't care. You have to make it up to me!"

Ji Huaijin lifted his eyes and said good-naturedly, "All right. Tell me how."