Fu Jingzhou unconsciously loosened his grip.
His gaze stayed fixed on Jiang Nan, deep and captivating, like obsidian.
"If there's one thing I hate most, it's being betrayed."
The man's voice was low, as though he were tempting him, or testing the sincerity of the person before him.
He looked earnestly at Jiang Nan and said, "As long as we're married, don't betray me. Understand?"
Jiang Nan had more or less worked out why he was in a bad mood.
At this point in the story, the main gong, Fu Jinchuan, had secured a major partnership as the head of Fu Group's overseas operations, making Old Master Fu see him in a new light.
Fu Jingzhou had originally been negotiating that deal, but a subordinate had betrayed him, and the contract had ultimately fallen into Fu Jinchuan's hands.
"Got it, got it."
Puffing out his cheeks, Jiang Nan still stubbornly reached out and gently patted the man's head.
The touch was very light, as though he were soothing someone.
Fu Jingzhou blinked and released the young man's chin.
"Go back."
Jiang Nan paused, then asked, "Are you going to lick your wounds all by yourself like a little animal?"
Fu Jingzhou's lips pressed into a straight line. A moment later, his expression shifted into something like a smile. "Who did you learn that from this time?"
"Um..." Jiang Nan gave it some serious thought. "That's how the male lead was described in that domineering CEO novel Uncle He recommended."
"Be good." Fu Jingzhou patted his head. "Try reading something with a little substance."
Jiang Nan slowly straightened up. "Sorry, fine feed is wasted on a wild boar. I just like reading about domineering CEOs falling in love with their sweet little wives."
Fu Jingzhou looked entirely unsurprised. "I know."
Jiang Nan turned and walked away.
After two steps, something seemed to occur to him, and he stopped again.
Fu Jingzhou raised an eyebrow slightly.
Jiang Nan folded his arms. The anger in his eyes had not faded, but he still said, "Remember to eat the toasted marshmallows I bought you."
Fu Jingzhou froze.
Only when the footsteps grew so distant that he could no longer hear them did he come back to himself.
Looking at the cute pale pink box in front of him, he slowly reached out and opened it.
The marshmallows had gone cold and did not look particularly good, but the moment he opened the box, he could still smell their sweetness.
The talk show was scheduled for the following Wednesday. Its full title was "I'll Give You Your Happiness."
It was pretty much the most popular of all the talk shows.
Early Tuesday morning, Jiang Nan sat blearily on the living room sofa in his pajamas.
That was the scene Fu Jingzhou saw when he stepped out of the elevator.
Jiang Nan wore his newly purchased little cow pajamas, his exposed limbs long and fair. He looked utterly sleepy, his eyes half closed and his head drooping, as though he were still dreaming.
His fingers paused slightly as he tied his tie. "Are you sleepwalking?" Fu Jingzhou asked.
Hearing the man's familiar voice, Jiang Nan suddenly opened his eyes.
"You're up?"
Fu Jingzhou gave a slight, indifferent nod.
Jiang Nan said, "I have work tomorrow, so I have to fly out this afternoon."
"And?"
"So I'm saying goodbye to you."
Jiang Nan's tone was cheerful.
Alphas and Omegas had to put gland patches on the backs of their necks every day to effectively prevent their pheromones from leaking.
Jiang Nan always forgot about this.
He did put one on whenever he went out.
But he was at home now.
Fu Jingzhou did not seem to like having servants around, so they left every evening at seven after finishing the cleaning.
After staying with them for a few days, Uncle He had returned to the old residence to look after Old Master Fu.
Besides, Fu Jingzhou was a Beta.
As everyone knew, Betas could not smell any pheromones.
So Jiang Nan felt perfectly at ease at home and often forgot to put on a gland patch.
Jiang Nan had probably slept very deeply the night before, so he was enveloped in the scent of palmarosa.
Compared with roses, the scent of palmarosa had an added hint of sweet fruit.
Fu Jingzhou's Adam's apple bobbed.
He was actually a little agitated.
Did this person have any idea that every word he said, every pose, and every gesture seemed like seduction?
"Phew..." Fu Jingzhou turned his head and let out a long breath.
Jiang Nan scratched his head and continued staring at him.
Fu Jingzhou had no choice but to answer, "Understood."
Jiang Nan's lips immediately curved up. "It's rare for me to get up this early. I'll go get busy, then."
Looking at his pajamas, Fu Jingzhou frowned almost imperceptibly. "Busy doing what?"
Jiang Nan stood up and answered with complete seriousness, "Busy going back to sleep."
Fu Jingzhou said, "...You really are busy, then."
Jiang Nan waved at him. "Hurry up and go to work."
Jiang Nan slept until one in the afternoon, when Zhu Xia woke him with a barrage of eight hundred phone calls.
"Hello?"
The young man mumbled without even opening his eyes.
Zhu Xia asked him very calmly, "What are you doing right now?"
Jiang Nan said, "Mm... sleeping."
Zhu Xia took a deep breath. "Pack your things. Meet me outside the airport at two."
Jiang Nan's eyes flew open. "Why did the time suddenly change?"
Zhu Xia explained, "Your original flight overlapped with Shen Anbai's. He's really popular right now, so plenty of fans will definitely come to meet him. The airport will be too crowded."
"Shen Anbai?"
Jiang Nan slowly repeated the name, the last traces of sleepiness vanishing.
It was the main shou.
The very person Fu Jingzhou had loved seriously and unrequitedly for two years.
At one fifty-eight, Zhu Xia stood outside the airport in sunglasses and glanced down at her watch.
Just as she was about to call Jiang Nan, she suddenly spotted a familiar figure approaching with a suitcase.
A plain white, skin-toned T-shirt and black shorts left his long, fair calves exposed.
A black baseball cap covered his dazzling pink hair, a U-shaped pillow hung around his neck, and he held a pouch of milk between his lips.
Zhu Xia froze on the spot.
She almost thought she had mistaken him for someone else.
A year ago, Jiang Nan had possessed a god-tier face, yet he had been a hopeless case.
The person walking toward her now was carefree and laid-back, but he had the air of a star.
At least, in just those few minutes, several young women had already been sneaking glances at him.
Jiang Nan stopped in front of her and took a sip of milk. "Let's go."
Zhu Xia paused, forgetting all about scolding him.
Only after they boarded the plane did she come to her senses. "Have you... been possessed?"
Jiang Nan pushed his cap up a little. "You even figured that out?"
"Fine." The young man sighed with complete sincerity. "I won't hide it from you anymore. I'm actually an alien spy. You've read The Three-Body Problem, right? We on Nan Nan Planet have already received the signals sent from Earth. I came specifically to save you."
"So please call me Great Hero Nan Nan from now on."
The corner of Zhu Xia's mouth twitched. "...Just go to sleep."
Jiang Nan shook his head. "I've already had my sleep."
Zhu Xia left him alone and opened her laptop to handle some work.
After signing the contract, she turned to glance at Jiang Nan.
Jiang Nan was scrolling through short videos.
Every video featured the same person.
The young man on the screen wore an ink-blue hanfu and danced onstage.
His waist was supple and his smile serene, but most eye-catching of all were his meticulously outlined peach-blossom eyes.
Pink eyeshadow shaded the corners of his eyes.
He lifted his head, sleeves fluttering, then turned back gently, the corners of his eyes tilting up ever so slightly.
It did far more than make hearts flutter.
Zhu Xia raised an eyebrow. "You're watching Shen Anbai?"
"Yeah, just having a look," Jiang Nan said.
Zhu Xia folded her arms. "You could say he stepped on you to rise to the top."