Futile Devices Scans

“Zhang Chi, if you fucking try that again, believe it or not, I’ll kill you.”

“Mhm, I believe you.” The man standing beside the bed spoke gently as he reached into the messy blankets and hauled Xue Bao Tian into his arms, handing him a cup of water. “Drink some water and soothe your throat. Your voice is already hoarse.”

“Fuck your mother, Zhang Chi, you backtracking little bastard deserve every curse thrown at you.”

“Mhm. Drink some water.”

A few mouthfuls of warm water slid down his throat, like drops of dew reviving dried grass. Some strength finally returned to Xue Bao Tian’s aching body. To vent his anger, he no longer cared whether it looked unmanly or not. Turning his head, he bit down hard on the flesh over Zhang Chi’s chest muscle, teeth sinking in solidly.

Zhang Chi’s muscles twitched. The hand around Xue Bao Tian’s waist moved to the back of his neck and rubbed gently. He endured it for a while, but when it really became too painful, his fingers slid to the man’s jaw and gave a light squeeze, instantly weakening the force of the bite.

The little strength Xue Bao Tian had just recovered happened to run out as well. Collapsing into Zhang Chi’s arms, he spat lightly and sneered, “Smells like dick.”

Zhang Chi let him curse. Reaching over, he switched on the bedside nightlight. A warm yellow glow opened up within the darkness, covering the two of them perfectly.

“Two Hundred, I’m hungry. Do you have anything to eat here?”

The low voice reached his ears, and Xue Bao Tian immediately looked incredulous. “Zhang Chi, I seriously admire how thick your skin is. It’s practically ceramic-grade. We already agreed that in the car was the last time. We settled everything there. Then you said you wanted to take me home because I was tired, and I let you. Then you said you wanted to see the kitten, and I let you do that too. Who knew…” He glanced at the two condoms on the floor and snapped angrily, “Zhang Chi, are the words coming out of your mouth all tofu-dreg construction projects? Not a single sentence can stand upright!”

Xue Bao Tian slapped Zhang Chi’s shameless face lightly. “And now you want food? Tired from fucking me? Then lie down and let Master Xue do you instead—you won’t be hungry anymore!”

Zhang Chi caught that hand and kissed him helplessly, only to be shoved away by Xue Bao Tian. “Get lost. I’m taking a shower.” He got out of bed, but his weak legs wobbled the moment they touched the floor. Zhang Chi reached out to steady him, only to receive a sharp glare in return. “When I come out of the shower, I’d better see that you’re already gone.”

The warm water eased some of the soreness in his muscles, but it also made his body feel even softer and weaker. When he pushed open the bathroom door, the chaotic bed had already been cleaned and neatly made. Bathed in the warm light filling the room, the tall man’s figure was nowhere to be seen.

Moving bonelessly to the bed, Xue Bao Tian collapsed face-first into the soft bedding. Zhang Chi never held back when tossing someone around in bed—his explosive strength and endurance were astonishing. His rough style in bed was also completely different from his usual gentle, easygoing personality. If not for the occasional soft kisses, Xue Bao Tian would have thought that at any moment, he might end up like the guy who had been pinned to the ground earlier, having several ribs brutally broken.

Youth was always full of brute strength.

Xue Bao Tian thought back to when he himself had been in his early twenties. In every possible way, he seemed inferior to Zhang Chi. He cursed under his breath. “Beast.”

Creak. The sound of a door opening.

Startled, Xue Bao Tian, who had been mentally searching for more insults, looked toward the doorway. The bedroom door opened from outside, revealing Zhang Chi’s thoroughly punchable face through the narrow crack.

“Two Hundred, I cooked noodles. Want some?”

Xue Bao Tian swore to heaven that if he had any physical strength left, Zhang Chi would not have survived tonight.

The little kitten rubbed itself around Zhang Chi’s feet, looking shamelessly clingy. Xue Bao Tian couldn’t bear to look. Helplessly, he raised an arm to cover his eyes. “Zhang Chi, meeting you is the greatest punishment heaven has ever inflicted on me.”

As the sound of a bowl being set down reached his ears, the fragrance of noodles drifted through the air. Xue Bao Tian’s fingers twitched slightly, and his throat bobbed with a deep swallow.

“Your kitchen only had noodles and eggs, so I made a bowl of plain noodles. Eat a little?”

This apartment belonged to Xue Bao Tian. He lived here five days a week and returned to the family estate for two nights on weekends. Those were the rules Xue Kun had set. The kitchen in the apartment was rarely used. Once the sun went down, Xue Bao Tian’s life was usually wasted in clubs and bars. Aside from some instant food occasionally brought over by his sister, even he wasn’t sure what was actually in the apartment.

Xue Bao Tian had barely eaten a proper meal and had been thoroughly tossed around by Zhang Chi all night. His stomach was already completely empty. This hunger mixed with simmering anger felt strangely familiar. Enduring the irritation, he dug up that humiliating memory from the back of his mind.

Removing his arm from his face, he looked mocking. “Using the same trick again? Force someone first, then cook a bowl of noodles afterward to make up for it?”

Zhang Chi froze for a moment, then remembered how after the first time they had slept together, he had also cooked a pot of noodles.

He swallowed back the words I was hungry that time too and smiled instead. “I don’t really have any other skills. All I can do is cook you a bowl of noodles to make you happy. At least eat a little, Master Xue.”

Xue Bao Tian stared at him for a long while before finally sitting up and moving to the chair on the balcony terrace. Zhang Chi, perceptive as always, immediately carried the bowl over, stuffing chopsticks into his hand with an extremely humble attitude.

Xue Bao Tian reluctantly accepted the chopsticks and frowned while eating a few bites. When the kitten came over to cling to him again, he cursed coldly, “Just like the person who rescued you—no backbone at all.”

After scolding it, he pulled out a tissue and spread it on the floor, picking out two noodles for the kitten. He casually stroked its not-so-smooth fur once, and a faint smile quietly appeared in his eyes.

A bowl of hot noodles settled into his stomach, and most of Xue Bao Tian’s anger dissipated. He accepted the lemon water Zhang Chi handed him to cleanse his palate. As the sweet, refreshing taste lingered between his lips and teeth, even the remaining irritation faded away.

Zhang Chi washed the dishes, then took a coat and draped it over Xue Bao Tian’s shoulders. Pulling the lapels together snugly with both hands, he smoothly crouched down in front of him.

His forehead was partially hidden by loose strands of hair, his eyes deep and clear. Calloused fingers wrapped around Xue Bao Tian’s wrist, and a gentle warmth showed between Zhang Chi’s brows as he coaxed softly, “I got carried away and lost control. Master Xue, calm down a little. Don’t stoop to my level.”

Xue Bao Tian broke free from his hand and pulled out a cigarette, lazily mocking him while holding it between his fingers. “How is this any different from apologizing after domestic violence, Zhang Chi?”

Zhang Chi paused slightly, and a trace of loneliness hid within his faint smile. “You said it was the last time. It left me feeling kind of empty, so I got greedy.”

The motion of lighting the cigarette paused. Xue Bao Tian stared at Zhang Chi without speaking. After a while, he lowered his eyes, lit the tobacco, and took a deep drag. Only after the nicotine soothed his whole body did he slowly exhale smoke into Zhang Chi’s face. “Fallen for your Master Xue?”

As the smoke gradually dispersed, the hand Zhang Chi had been pushed away with changed course and moved to knead the soft flesh at Xue Bao Tian’s waist. That area was clearly uncomfortable—he had seen Xue Bao Tian pounding on it himself earlier.

While massaging him, Zhang Chi replied, “Not to the point of love. I prefer someone quieter and gentler.”

The warm palm slowly kneaded his sore muscles, and Xue Bao Tian nodded in satisfaction. “Good thing you haven’t lost your mind. I’m a fucking straight man. One careless mistake and you dragged me into the water, got my shoes wet—but I’m getting back on shore.”

He leaned down slightly to look at Zhang Chi. “Aren’t soft, sweet women better? What’s so interesting about holding a man? Want your big brother here to straighten you out so we can go ashore together?”

A sharp pinch made him hiss. Xue Bao Tian glared. “Fine, don’t go ashore then. Why the fuck are you pinching me?”

Kicking Zhang Chi away from in front of him, Xue Bao Tian stood and walked to the balcony railing. Resting his arms on it, he gazed lazily at the sky that was beginning to pale, his voice calm. “It’s almost dawn.”

He exhaled smoke. Even the smoke at this hour seemed tired, dispersing slowly. Within the drifting haze, Xue Bao Tian spoke softly. “Get out.”

“I’ll leave at dawn.” Zhang Chi leaned beside him, silently staring into the dim horizon for a while before turning his head. “Two Hundred, let me have a puff.”

Xue Bao Tian raised a brow and removed the cigarette from his mouth. “Never smoked before?”

“No. Couldn’t afford cigarettes.” Zhang Chi leaned closer, only to watch the cigarette being moved farther away by pale, slender fingers.

“If you’ve never smoked, what the hell were you pretending for at the clubhouse?” Xue Bao Tian still remembered the cold dominance in Zhang Chi’s expression when he held the cigarette between his lips. Back then, it had inexplicably made him three parts afraid.

“Mhm. I was pretending.”

“To scare me?”

“Sort of. I couldn’t think of any other action that looked imposing.”

“Fuck your mother!”

“Two Hundred,” Zhang Chi pressed close again, rough fingers stroking his cheek. “I’m leaving. Can we stop fighting?”

Suddenly, Xue Bao Tian felt like he had nowhere to vent his frustration. He felt like a balloon that hadn’t been popped but was slowly deflating anyway. Still flattened in the end, yet not even making a sound about it. It felt pathetic.

“Who’d bother staying mad at an idiot like you.”

“Two Hundred, the cigarette.”

Xue Bao Tian glanced at him and held out the cigarette. But just as those lips were about to touch the damp filter, he changed his mind.

He put the cigarette back into his own mouth. Smelling the fresh scent clinging to Zhang Chi, he said coldly, “Your feathers aren’t even fully grown yet, and you want to smoke? Besides, how many cigarettes can you even afford in a day? Don’t learn bad habits. You’re not allowed to smoke anymore, got it?”

Zhang Chi smiled and rubbed his hair. “Alright. I won’t smoke anymore.”

When the first rays of dawn broke across the horizon, Zhang Chi’s smile faded as he stepped away from Xue Bao Tian.

He returned to the bedroom to change clothes, crouched down to pet the kitten for a while, then went to the entryway to put on his shoes.

“Two Hundred,” he said while tying his shoelaces, “Huang Song invited you to dinner on the first day of next month. I think he’ll definitely make a move for the recording in your possession. Be careful. Don’t let anyone set you up. That man has a heavy streak of violence and he’s ruthless. You’d better bring more people with you. Also, there are a few friends around you who more or less hold hostility toward you. You should stay on guard around them too and gradually distance yourself.”

After tying one shoe, he moved on to the other. “And I suggest installing a security system at home. It doesn’t need to be high-level, just something that alerts you if someone breaks in.”

Xue Bao Tian, who had been lazily leaning against the wall, had long since gone stiff. “People would break into my home too?”

Finally finishing his shoelaces, Zhang Chi stood up. “Two Hundred, you’ve made too many enemies. For your own safety, you need to be fully prepared for everything.”

He patted the pale-faced man on the shoulder. “I’m leaving. Take care of yourself.”

His feet stepped outside the door. Zhang Chi reached back to close it, but just as the apartment door was about to shut completely, he heard Xue Bao Tian’s voice.

“How about… how about you stay a little longer, Zhang Chi?”

The door stopped. The gap that remained open neither widened nor narrowed for a long while. Just as Xue Bao Tian’s heart climbed into his throat, the door slowly opened again, revealing Zhang Chi’s handsome, gentle face.

Smiling, he said, “Then I’ll have to stay here.”

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