Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

“You’re awake?”

After Bai Muchuan asked that, he must have felt the silliness of his question. He cleared his throat and asked another question. “Have you eaten breakfast?”

“I did.” When Xiang Wan said that, she was packing her laptop into her haversack. “What’s the matter?”

“There’s nothing much going on today, you can rest at home.”

“Oh?” Xiang Wan stopped what she was doing.

She was the only one at home in that quiet house.

She could hear Bai Muchuan’s light breathing sounds through the phone.

Xiang Wan heard that, and her heart started to pound furiously and uneasily.

Slowly, she dropped her bag. “Is it really okay… not to go to work on the second day?”

Bai Muchuan paused for a while, she could not read his emotions with his tepid tone, but he sure sounded gentler than earlier.

“There was some heavy snow last night, and the weather is freezing. There isn’t anything for you at the moment; you need not bear the cold just to come to work!”

His words sounded very sincere.

Xiang Wan could calm down gradually after hearing his words.

She understood Bai Muchuan very well, so much so she felt that she understood him better than he was to himself. At this moment, he was having some emotional issues, but it was not as serious as what she had thought, much less that it would affect their work.

They were adults, and sometimes, one would behave emotionally.

“Mm.” Xiang Wan’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as she tried to maintain a calmer and peaceful self.

“Alright then, thank you, my boss!”

Bai Muchuan did not respond to that.

Xiang Wan could sensitively feel that he had a moment of displeasure when she called him ‘boss.’

She pursed her lips into a smirk. “Yesterday I submitted my report and even gained my boss’s approval. Since we’re waiting for new findings and developments, you’re right that I need not go there for now. Since my boss is so empathetic towards me, how should I repay your kindness? I can forgo a chapter tonight if you want?”

Bai Muchuan’s breathing stopped for a second.

A moment later, he puffed a soft sigh. “I didn’t wake you up since Laowu called me up very early in the morning.”

Obviously, Xiang Wan knew this was just an excuse.

Xiang Wan did not know if he had used Laowu to bear the ‘blame’, but she did not intend to find out either.

There were some things that would be meaningless if one probed deeper than one should.

“I see,” she replied.

The atmosphere started to feel strange.

Bai Muchuan remained quiet for a while. “Are you mad?”

“No?” Xiang Wan chuckled as she listened. “I’m just feeling strange that you are suddenly so polite towards me. I feel awkward.”

“…” Bai Muchuan was silent again.

After waiting for a while, he did not speak further, but he did not hang up the phone either.

“Fine then,” she smiled. “You should go get busy, so I’ll really… stay at home then?”

“Mm.” Bai Muchuan added. “Actually, you just need to report to Zhan Se.”

Her identity at work was Zhan Se’s personal assistant!

As long as Zhan Se did not reprimand her, no one else could.

This was originally a reasonable sentence.

However, when Xiang Wan heard that coming from him at a time like this, that awkward feeling resurfaced again.

By only reporting to Zhan Se, that meant she need not report to him. It felt like the distance between them widened again.

“Sure.”

Without waiting for Bai Muchuan to respond, she hung up quietly, stared at her bag for a moment before taking her laptop out slowly, and placed it on the computer table. Her action and speed was very slow, just like those slow scenes in a movie…

…

Quan Shaoteng was staring at Bai Muchuan without batting an eyelid. The latter looked as though he had lost his soul; his gaze felt lonely and melancholic. His imposing aura, confidence, and pride seemed to have disappeared. Bai Muchuan sat on his chair in his office quietly like a lifeless doll.

“Did flowers grow out from the ceiling?”

Tsk! Quan Shaoteng remarked while he pulled a chair and sat before his desk.

“Little Bai, even if your eyes pierced through a hole in the ceiling, it won’t grow a ‘Xiang Wan’ out for you! Don’t waste your effort.”

Bai Muchuan’s eyes looked towards him. “You can scram now.”

Quan Shaoteng crossed his legs and showed a half-smile. “Don’t be in a rush. I need to stay here offering advice as a love consultant for you.”

“…”

He, who had never fallen in love before, was the love consultant?

“What gave you the guts?”

“Idol dramas!”

Tang Yuanchu and several others liked to tease Quan Shaoteng and tell him to watch more idol dramas. He never minded their teasing and hence, threw back that excuse to Bai Muchuan too.

“From my experience after watching hundreds of idol dramas, Comrade Little Bai, you’re behaving like… you’ve fallen out of love?”

Bai Muchuan’s back went stiff, and he glared at Quan Shaoteng frostily. “Do you believe that I’ll throw you out of the room if you try probing more?”

“I believe that!” Quan Shaoteng cackled and scrutinized Bai Muchuan as though he was examining the worth of some precious artifact. “Do you think you can achieve that?”

“Try me?”

“Come on then, don’t back down!”

Quan Shaoteng smiled arrogantly while he knocked on the desk lazily. “With your current state, you’re like a rookie going up against a professional!”

Bai Muchuan’s eyes narrowed dangerously; his fists clenched together but loosened gradually.

“I’m tired, I’ll take a break.”

What he was implying was “I won’t bother with you so just scram.”

However, was Quan Shaoteng someone who would comply with the request?

With a composed attitude, he pulled the chair even nearer and took a big envelope of documents on Bai Muchuan’s desk. “Did you not sleep last night?”

Bai Muchuan just snorted and ignored him.

Quan Shaoteng gave a sidelong glance. “Not only did you not sleep, but you also did some exercise that caused your tiredness!”

Bai Muchuan looked at him in silence. “…”

He suddenly sat up straight, took a big stapler, and waved it at Quan Shaoteng. “Are you leaving or not?”

“I’m staying! Didn’t I always say this?” Quan Shaoteng winked at him, obviously enjoying the attempt to annoy him. “I’ll keep you company, my good buddy!”

“Scram…” Bai Muchuan gasped, put down the stapler, and exhaled a puff of air. He sat back down again and closed his eyes. “Up to you.”

“…”

No matter what he said, Bai Muchuan simply ignored him.

He only used such a tactic on Quan Shaoteng.

In no time, Quan Shaoteng started to get frustrated.

It was boring…

… Too boring.

Quan Shaoteng looked at the time.

There were still over 30 minutes before work officially starts. How would he survive till then?

“D*rn, did you ask me to come over so early simply to let me watch you sleep?”

“…” There was no response.

“Little Bai, let me tell you, it’s not so easy to get rid of me after getting me to come here!”

“…” Bai Muchuan still looked the same.

“D*rn!” Quan Shaoteng stopped crossing his legs and stared at him with his body posture straight. “I really don’t understand you people. Why make things so complicated when in love… In the past, I have been telling you that there’s nothing great about falling in love… You refused to listen and look at you now, hehehehe, looking all hurt!”

Bai Muchuan kept quiet whereas Quan Shaoteng kept glancing at him unhappily.

Like fists that were hitting on a heap of cotton wool, it was useless.

“Fine! Since you don’t want to talk to me, I’ll talk to someone else—”

He let out a snort and took his mobile phone. “Hello, is this Little Wanwan?”

Bai Muchuan’s eyes instantly opened and met with Quan Shaoteng’s mischievous looking eyes.

Quan Shaoteng lifted his chin and showed a proud smile. “Afraid now?”

Bai Muchuan knew that he got fooled. Looking at Quan Shaoteng’s face that seemed to say “what can you do to me,” he pinched the space between his eyebrows and gave a resigned sigh. “It’s got nothing to do with her. It’s my problem. Stop bothering me and let me have some time alone, okay?”

“It’s got nothing to do with her?”

Quan Shaoteng gave it a thought before letting out a cuss and spoke in a low tone, “Don’t tell me, you got someone new already?!”