MTY chapter 10

For more than twenty years, Lu Ziqing had always carried himself with a carefree swagger. This was the first time someone had grabbed his arm and whispered so close to his ear.

How to describe it?

If it were anyone else, he’d think they were flirting.

But this was Lin Yu.

That meant only one thing—Lin Yu was definitely drunk.

Lu Ziqing’s ears burned slightly from the heat of Lin Yu’s breath. His whole body felt uncomfortable.

He quickly leaned back, pulling away. “Dude, if you’ve got something to say, just say it. No need to get all touchy.”

He never thought he’d hear himself saying something like that, sounding like some modest, chaste housewife being harassed.

Lin Yu, however, genuinely seemed to think Lu Ziqing hadn’t understood. “If I had cheated, there would be evidence. Like a bite mark on my scent gland, or even a partial bond. You can check for another alpha’s pheromones and see for yourself.”

Saying this, he turned his head and earnestly exposed the back of his neck to Lu Ziqing. “Go ahead.”

His pale, slender neck was completely exposed.

Lu Ziqing straightened him back up. “…You’re drunk.”

Lin Yu: “I’m not.”

Lu Ziqing: “You are.”

Lin Yu: “I swear I’m not.”

Lu Ziqing was getting frustrated with this drunk fool. “Alright, then answer me this—why do you think sniffing a gland is proof of cheating?”

Lin Yu blinked at him, not understanding.

“Who said cheating always involves biting scent glands?” Lu Ziqing scoffed. Then, out of nowhere, he reached out and rubbed Lin Yu’s right earlobe. “What if they bit here instead?”

Lu Ziqing fully admitted—he did that on purpose.

He felt like he’d lost face just now, and it was in front of Lin Yu, of all people. So of course, he had to turn the tables while Lin Yu was still drunk.

But even after having his ear rubbed, Lin Yu barely reacted.

He subconsciously reached up and touched it himself, then leaned closer, pressing his ear against Lu Ziqing. “You can check here too.”

His soft earlobe was right in front of Lu Ziqing, practically within reach.

Lu Ziqing: “…Who the hell wants to smell your ear? I was just making a point!”

Lin Yu, completely unguarded, leaned softly against his chest, stretching his neck with great effort to offer his earlobe, like a little rabbit thoroughly soaked in alcohol.

Lu Ziqing tried to back away, but Lin Yu only leaned in closer, as if completely oblivious to his reluctance.

Lu Ziqing sighed in defeat. “Alright, alright, my bad, my bad. Can you get off me now?”

Lin Yu was practically draped over him.

Lin Yu insisted stubbornly, “You still haven’t smelled my ear.”

Lu Ziqing: “I don’t want to smell it!”

Lin Yu lowered his head, muttering softly, “I really didn’t cheat…”

Well, looks like they weren’t getting past this tonight.

Lu Ziqing had no idea why Lin Yu was so obsessed with “proving his innocence.” The thing between them wasn’t even real, and his warning had only been to prevent any unnecessary trouble if things blew up—not because he actually cared whether Lin Yu was cheating or not.

Maybe this was just how good students were. Even for trivial matters, they wanted to prove themselves.

Lu Ziqing half-heartedly sniffed his earlobe. “There. No other scent. Happy now?”

Only then did Lin Yu seem content. He looked up sheepishly and gave him a small smile.

When he smiled, his eyes were clear and bright, like a piece of flawless crystal.

Lu Ziqing had originally meant to tease him, but Lin Yu wasn’t playing by any script.

Faced with Lin Yu’s completely pure and untainted smile, Lu Ziqing suddenly felt a little uncomfortable himself.

….What a weirdo, he thought begrudgingly.

…

Thursday morning, the office was quiet.

Liang Zhi was quietly working on a project proposal, Mi Lan was checking contracts out of sheer boredom, and Lu Ziqing was sketching with his headphones on.

Zhou Youyu, lounging in his chair with one leg crossed over the other, was playing cards on his phone when his screen suddenly lit up with a call. He immediately picked up his phone and stepped outside.

As soon as he left, the other three in the office simultaneously looked up in silent agreement.

Mi Lan pinched her nose and opened the window. “That old bastard. Reeks like hell. Finally got out of here.”

Liang Zhi: “Why’s he been hanging around the office all day? Didn’t he usually spend his time circling around Director Lin?”

Mi Lan scoffed. “Maybe his tongue’s tired from all that bootlicking. Needs a break.”

Liang Zhi: “I heard from security that Director Lin’s been going out to dinner with him every night lately. You’d think he’d take advantage of the momentum—why’s he suddenly laying low?”

For someone like Zhou Youyu, not sucking up to the higher-ups was more painful than death.

Mi Lan: “What do you think happened?”

Liang Zhi: “Have you noticed? Even though Director Lin eats with him all the time, he doesn’t give him any special treatment or extra resources. Even the Hongye Art Museum project got handed over to me to handle entirely.”

Mi Lan frowned. “So, you’re saying… Director Lin is just taking advantage of him without actually doing anything for him?”

Liang Zhi said cautiously, “That’s just my guess.”

Mi Lan: “I mean, I don’t like Zhou Youyu either… but if that’s the case, isn’t Director Lin afraid of retaliation?”

Even in office politics, people didn’t usually play like this.

There was an unspoken rule: if you take from someone, you owe them. That was just the way of the world.

Liang Zhi shook his head. “I don’t know what Director Lin is thinking, but I do know this—Zhou Youyu is definitely more confused about it than I am.”

…..

At that moment, Zhou Youyu was indeed deeply puzzled.

From the very first dinner he had with Lin Yu, he’d been utterly baffled.

He had expected Lin Yu to politely decline his invitation. To his surprise, Lin Yu agreed without hesitation.

Dinner was pleasant—Lin Yu was serious-faced but easy to talk to. He even laughed and played along when Zhou Youyu flattered him.

Feeling encouraged, Zhou Youyu ramped up the compliments, practically setting his mouth on fire with flattery.

When dinner ended, Zhou Youyu discreetly slid a pack of cigarettes toward him. Lin Yu glanced at it. “Sorry, I don’t smoke.”

Zhou Youyu plastered on a smile. “Just a small token. You can take it and give it to someone else.”

Lin Yu asked, “Do you smoke?”

Zhou Youyu quickly tried to figure out if this was some kind of test. Cautiously, he replied, “Yes! I do. These are good—Grand View Garden Ice Bombs. Cool and smooth, not harsh at all.”

Lin Yu unwrapped the packaging right in front of him. A shopping gift card slipped out from inside the pack. Lin Yu frowned. “Huh? Why is there a gift card in here?”

Zhou Youyu instantly broke into a cold sweat. “It… it must have fallen in by accident…”

“Be more careful next time.” Lin Yu handed the card back to him. “How much did tonight’s dinner cost?”

Zhou Youyu hesitated. “Not much…”

Lin Yu pressed on, so Zhou Youyu rolled his eyes and threw out a number. “Five hundred.”

As if. This meal definitely cost more than five hundred—add a zero and it’d be closer.

But Zhou Youyu was an old hand at this game. Some bosses liked to be extravagant while pretending to be frugal, so he cleverly lowballed the price.

Lin Yu nodded and immediately transferred 250 yuan to his WeChat. “I always split the bill when I eat out. Don’t be shy, just take it.”

Zhou Youyu turned green.

Even after sending Lin Yu off in his car, he still hadn’t figured out what was going on.

The next few times, Zhou Youyu didn’t dare sneak in any more shopping cards.

He wined and dined Lin Yu, chatted with him, but didn’t dare to push any boundaries.

After a few rounds of this, his wallet was really starting to hurt.

But he had already set the precedent of reporting five hundred per meal. He couldn’t suddenly raise it to five thousand now, right?

So he gritted his teeth and told himself that, after all, this money had been skimmed off the company’s accounts over the years. No harm in using it.

Still… this couldn’t go on.

If he kept this up, not only would he get nothing out of it, but his own savings would be drained dry.

…..

On Friday evening, as usual, Lin Yu got into Zhou Youyu’s car after work.

But this time, after dinner, as Lin Yu leaned back in the back seat with his eyes closed, Zhou Youyu quietly steered the car in a different direction.

The car drove for a while, and the noise grew louder.

Lin Yu opened his eyes. “This isn’t the way to my home.”

Zhou Youyu grinned eagerly. “You’ve worked hard this week. My treat—let’s sing some songs and relax. No need to be polite with me—ah, we’re here!”

He quickly got Lin Yu out of the car.

Lin Yu stepped down and looked up.

A bright blue sign, elegantly dressed waiters greeting guests at the entrance, and the muffled thumping of heavy drumbeats leaking from inside.

Zhou Youyu made a call, and soon a bar promoter came out with a big smile, accompanied by three or four young, attractive men.

“Mr. Zhou, what an honor! Please, come in!”

Lin Yu stood still.

Zhou Youyu’s smile stiffened. “Director Lin…?”

“Let’s go,” Lin Yu suddenly smiled. “How did you know? I love handsome men the most.”

The phone in his pocket rang, but the ringtone was swallowed by the deafening music.

At the same time, Lu Ziqing sat on the living room sofa at home, frowning at the unanswered call on his phone screen.