Zhou Ruo An’s mind went blank for a brief moment. When he felt a different kind of slick warmth in his mouth, the sky burst into its most dazzling colors.
Fireworks cascaded down like a falling galaxy.
Zhou Ruo An had always despised overly sentimental writing, yet for some reason, at this moment, he thought of his middle school deskmate’s notebook of copied quotes, its pages flipped by the wind.
Only those who have seen love and fireworks understand both the sorrow and beauty of this world.
Written in red ballpoint pen, the handwriting was ugly.
Bang—Zhou Ruo An threw a punch at Lin Yi without hesitation!
Later, on rare occasions, Zhou Ruo An would recall his first kiss. It had been brief—so brief that the fireworks hadn’t even finished fading.
With full force, even Lin Yi was forced to take a step back.
“Zhou Ruo An,” the man ignored the dull pain on his face, brushing aside the willow branches swaying back again, his tone unexpectedly sincere, “should we talk?”
The last streaks of light were swallowed by the dark sky. The park’s lighting didn’t reach this edge, and darkness slowly wrapped around them, hiding their expressions.
There was still moisture on his lips, and the slick sensation in his mouth felt unpleasant. Zhou Ruo An suppressed the urge to rinse it out and slipped his hand into his pocket, touching the coin hidden in the fold of his clothes.
His fingertips rubbed over its engraved patterns as he tried to suppress the anger inside him. His returning rationality weighed back and forth between “cutting ties” and “making use of.” In the end, Zhou Ruo An placed a cigarette between his lips, using its bitter taste to cover the lingering sensation.
He stepped forward, closing the distance to Lin Yi. “You like men?”
The faint ember at the tip of the cigarette lit up Zhou Ruo An’s eyes. Lin Yi saw no disgust in them.
“Yes,” he answered.
Zhou Ruo An looked away, smiling in a lazy yet striking way. “That’s good.” He casually patted Lin Yi’s shoulder. “At least there’s no damn need to worry about birth control.”
“But next time, be more careful. Don’t just… grab someone randomly after a few drinks.”
Another firework exploded in the sky with a loud bang. This time, neither of them looked up.
…
That very night, Zhou Ruo An stuffed two male escorts into Lin Yi’s room—one athletic, one alluring, both top-tier in the county.
The door crack was narrow, barely enough for Zhou Ruo An to peek through with one eye. His room and Lin Yi’s were separated by a long corridor. Now, at the far end of it, the two boys knocked on Lin Yi’s door.
From such a distance, and with Lin Yi’s voice so low, Zhou Ruo An couldn’t hear clearly. But he could make out one of the boys, his voice sharp and playful, cheerfully mentioning Zhou Ruo An’s name.
The man inside seemed to pause for a moment before stepping aside to let them in.
The boys filed in one after another. As they passed Lin Yi, their fingers lightly brushed against his sleeveless black shirt, their flirtatiousness obvious even from afar.
Zhou Ruo An put a cigarette between his lips and scoffed from where he stood. “Damn faggot.”
Suddenly, the phone in his pocket rang, startling the voyeur.
He pulled it out and casually glanced at the name on the screen. Zhou Ruo An froze, then abruptly lifted his head and looked through the crack again.
At the other end of the corridor, Lin Yi leaned against his door, holding up his phone and giving it a slight shake. Then he slowly brought it back to his ear without speaking. Only faint breathing came through the receiver, hot against Zhou Ruo An’s ear.
Since he’d already been caught spying, there was no need to hide anymore. Zhou Ruo An pushed the door open, moved the phone slightly away from his ear, and spoke first: “Do you like the gift I sent you?”
“I like it.”
“Good. Let it help you blow off some steam, so you don’t go around grabbing people when you’re desperate.” Zhou Ruo An looked at the tall man across from him, joking like a buddy. “Cost me a lot—make sure you enjoy it for me.”
Lin Yi smiled as well. “Definitely.”
After that, the sound fell away. One corridor, two open doors—everything quiet.
After quite a while, Lin Yi turned and went back into his room. Before closing the door, he said one last sentence: “Zhou Ruo An, I shouldn’t have gone soft on you.”
…
Zhou Ruo An stood at the doorway for a long time—so long that Ren Yu thought he had fallen asleep standing up.
It was only after being softly called that he came back to his senses.
Zhou Ruo An tossed away the cigarette butt that had almost burned his fingers, returned to the living room, sat on the sofa, and asked Ren Yu, “You said you had something to report?”
“Zhou Zhe went to the electronics factory, bringing with him the circuit board components he had purchased through connections at a high price.”
For the first time that entire day, Zhou Ruo An truly smiled. “What was his reaction when he found out I had already recovered the stolen components?”
“His face turned green.” Ren Yu promptly handed him a glass of alcohol. “Fourth Young Master, you’ve stayed one step ahead of him at every turn. Second Young Master wanted to rise on his own, but now he can only end up doing all the work for your benefit.”
“When are we going to expose Zhou Zhe as the mastermind behind this incident?” he asked.
Zhou Ruo An crossed his legs and smiled in return. “Why should we expose him?”
Ren Yu couldn’t keep up with his line of thought and looked surprised. “That way we’d eliminate a strong rival.”
“I’ve been back in the Zhou family for less than three months as an illegitimate son, and I’d already be taking down their legitimate Second Young Master. Leaving aside whether the charge can even be pinned on Zhou Zhe—if it is, I probably won’t be able to take another step forward in the future.”
Ren Yu thought for a moment. “So that’s why you didn’t send Cui Liu to the police station to charge him with theft? You didn’t want him to implicate the Second Young Master?”
“He’ll definitely confess—it’s just a matter of how.” Zhou Ruo An glanced at his phone. “I already have his statement. Consider it a bargaining chip. It might come in handy later.”
“He’s willing to testify against the Second Young Master?”
“With Lin Yi, something like that isn’t difficult.”
The mention of that name made Zhou Ruo An pause slightly. After a moment, he asked awkwardly, “Those two escorts you found… they don’t have any diseases, right?”
It was also Ren Yu’s first time handling such a task, and his answer lacked confidence. “They… probably don’t.”
Zhou Ruo An’s expression wasn’t great. He raised the glass to his lips, muttering under his breath, “That idiot… who knows if he even knows how to use protection.”
As if unwilling to linger on the topic of Lin Yi any longer, Zhou Ruo An finished his drink and quickened his speech. “Besides, keeping Zhou Zhe around is useful to me.”
Without giving Ren Yu a chance to interrupt, he asked, “Have you seen the proposal Zhou Zhe submitted at the beginning of the year?”
Ren Yu thought briefly. “At the beginning of the year, all proposals were organized and archived by our General Office. The Second Young Master’s proposal… suggested that the company should gradually shift from a trade-based economy to an industrial economy. He proposed reducing reliance on outsourcing factories and instead building or acquiring processing plants owned by Shengkai.”
“Exactly. He set up such a large scheme not just to claim credit, but more importantly to use this incident to force the board of directors to take his proposal seriously—and then push his ideas into action.”
There was a sharpness to Zhou Ruo An that didn’t match his age. His gaze was calm but not clear, layered with tightly concealed ambition. “If this project gets approved by the head company, Zhou Zhe will very likely be appointed as the project leader—one step to the top.”
“So you intend to…”
“If Zhou Zhe loses the chance to claim credit, he definitely won’t let go of the factory project. I’ll wait for him to bring it up, and then…”
“And then you’ll naturally reap the benefits based on your achievements in this incident?” Ren Yu’s eyes shone brightly, as if already seeing a smooth road ahead.
“It’s not that simple.” Zhou Ruo An looked out at the deep night beyond the window and said softly, “I can only try my best.”
…
The next morning, Zhou Ruo An sat in his car watching the two boys walk out of the hotel. Without makeup, they looked somewhat exhausted. Their steps were unsteady, dragging slightly.
Less than ten minutes later, Lin Yi also came out of the hotel, carrying a bag. Zhou Ruo An honked the horn, lowered the car window, and waved at him.
Lin Yi walked up to the car, bent slightly, rested his arm on the window frame, and asked coldly, “What is it?”
“I paid for your night of pleasure, and I don’t even get a smile out of you?” Zhou Ruo An felt the distance between them was too close and subtly leaned back.
Lin Yi, however, leaned his upper body into the car, pressing forward until Zhou Ruo An had nowhere to retreat. “Get to the point.”
Sometimes Zhou Ruo An hated how easily his mind made associations. Just like now—he suddenly recalled the scorching breath against his neck in the pool, and the slick, soft sensation in his mouth beneath the fireworks.
Annoying.
He took a deep breath. “From now on… I’ll have to rely on you more, Brother Lin.”
“Easy enough. Money talks in business. I won’t disappoint you, Fourth Young Master.” Lin Yi reached up and pulled the seatbelt, smiling as he looked at Zhou Ruo An, who was clearly startled. “Half a month from now, I’ll come collect the interest. We’ll settle our accounts slowly.”
With a click, the seatbelt locked into place. Zhou Ruo An’s heart tightened—he didn’t know why, but he suddenly felt like he had been dragged into a hunting ground by a beast…
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Futile Devices Scans 
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