From the moment Yu Tan sent that message to when Hu Xiaoyu stormed into his room, barely three minutes had passed.
Yu Tan had just stepped out of the shower. A white towel hung loosely around his waist; damp hair clung to his forehead, softening the sharp edges of his face. The harsh, cold aura he carried during the day was replaced by something quieter—paler, smoother, dangerously beautiful.
His body, lean and taut, gleamed under the dim light.
He looked like a German who'd just climbed ashore—fragile, lethal in his presence.
Hu Xiaoyu had entered with righteous fury. But after a few seconds of staring, that fury faltered.
He's… kind of good-looking.
Then he yanked the blanket up over his head.
He didn't notice how red the tips of his ears had gone. He only knew he was hot all over and far too embarrassed to look again.
Yu Tan raised a brow. Normally, anyone who dared barge into his room like this would be lucky to crawl out alive.
But with Hu Xiaoyu… all he felt was amusement.
He walked over and poked the lump under the blanket.
From beneath came a muffled growl—fierce, but trembling slightly. "What are you doing?"
Yu Tan's voice dropped an octave. "Did you knock? Who told you to run wild in someone else's room?"
He was clearly picking a fight. Ever since they'd crossed that line, Hu Xiaoyu came and went as he pleased—study, bedroom, anywhere.
Hu Xiaoyu went quiet. Guilty, angry, and unable to argue, he tried to get up.
Yu Tan pushed him back down. "So easy to rile up? Go to sleep."
He turned off the lights and lay beside him.
The darkness filled with silence.
Hu Xiaoyu peeked through the blanket. Yu Tan looked utterly calm, eyes closed, body still.
Seriously? He's just… going to sleep?
He hesitated, then slid one foot into Yu Tan's blanket and nudged his leg.
"You asleep?"
Yu Tan opened his eyes, rolled over, and caught the wandering foot. His fingers trailed up the ankle, light and deliberate. "What do you think?"
His tone was lazy, teasing. "... Or are you craving something?"
The last words brushed Hu Xiaoyu's ears like a feather. He flinched, rubbing at them. "I just— I don't want to owe you."
Owe him what? Gratitude? Desire? The thought tangled in his chest.
Yu Tan let go. His voice cooled. "Then owe me."
He hadn't intended to do anything tonight, not really. But having the boy crawl into his bed only to turn his back—
That was almost worse.
Hu Xiaoyu, angry and confused, rolled over, presenting him with a defiant back.
And within a minute, he was fast asleep.
Yu Tan lay there in the dark, staring at that soft curve of his spine, and muttered under his breath, "Unbelievable."
A week later, Yu Tan had personally reviewed every halfway decent high school in Dragon City.
He narrowed it down to five and insisted on visiting each one with Hu Xiaoyu.
Hu Xiaoyu, who was already sleepy on good days, now turned his exhaustion into protest.
By the third school, he barely opened his eyes—he got into the car, fell asleep, and stumbled half-awake at every stop.
At first, Yu Tan thought he might be ill and took him to the hospital.
The doctor said he was perfectly fine. Which meant—
he was resisting.
Silently.
Yu Tan's patience thinned by the day.
A'Jiu, watching his boss carry the sleeping boy out of the car yet again, noticed how gentle the man's movements were—and how dangerous his expression looked.
He knew that calm wouldn't last much longer.
Another day, another visit.
"Get up," Yu Tan said. "We're visiting schools today."
"I want a vacation," came the muffled reply. "I have paid leave. I'm not going. You go."
Yu Tan stood there for two seconds. Then he ripped the blanket off entirely.
The blanket hit the floor.
In a blur, he dressed Hu Xiaoyu himself, then tore a T-shirt into strips and tied the boy's wrists together.
Hu Xiaoyu didn't struggle.
He watched the man's face—tight jaw, burning eyes—and stayed still.
He was a fox spirit. Mortal strength couldn't truly harm him.
Yu Tan carried him downstairs. "Fine. You don't want to go in? Then you'll sit in the car while I tour the school myself."
Hu Xiaoyu gave a lazy "Okay," closed his eyes, and went back to sleep.
That small act of defiance was also a quiet form of trust.
He knew—deep down—that Yu Tan would never really hurt him.
Yu Tan exhaled sharply. He'd never met anyone so infuriating and so untouchable at once.
When the car pulled up to the company instead of a school, Yu Tan woke him.
"I have to handle something first. We'll go afterward, alright?"
Hu Xiaoyu didn't open his eyes. "No."
"Then stay here," Yu Tan snapped, and strode off.
He left A'Jiu in charge, his back rigid with frustration.
A'Jiu wanted to intervene. Someone had to bend—but his boss never did.
And Hu Xiaoyu… didn't need to. A soft word from him, and everything would ease.
Yet when A'Jiu turned, the boy was already asleep again.
He sighed, then took a risk, gently waking him and offering quiet advice.
Hu Xiaoyu shook his head. "It's useless."
He was right. This wasn't about compromise—it was about something deeper neither of them could name.
Inside the building, Yu Tan didn't make it far before someone stopped him.
Yang Kai.
He looked thinner, eyes sunken. The arrogance was gone; desperation had taken its place.
"Mr. Yu," he blurted, "I was wrong about—about Hu Xiaoyu. I'll apologize! Please, spare my family!"
Yu Tan's gaze flickered at the name. "You knew him before?"
He'd already read every line of the boy's file; he knew his old surname—Cui.
Only someone from that past life would still call him that.
Yang Kai hesitated, realizing his mistake too late.
Yu Tan gestured for the security guards to leave and led him into his office.
He didn't raise his voice. He didn't need to.
By the time Yang Kai walked out, he'd spilled everything—
The bullying, the isolation, the locked bathrooms, the torn notebooks, the day the boy stopped coming to school.
The original report had said, "I withdrew due to family illness."
Now Yu Tan knew the truth.
He stood by the window, lit a cigarette, and crashed it against the glass. Smoke curled, acrid and cold.
Then he asked, almost too softly,
"If someone had done all that to you, would you ever set foot in a school again?"
Yang Kai trembled, voice breaking. "I… I don't know…"
Yu Tan looked at him. "You will."
When Hu Xiaoyu woke again, Yu Tan was there.
But something in his face had changed. His brows were tight, his eyes dark with a misty kind of pain.
"Did something happen at work?" Hu Xiaoyu asked, blinking sleepily.
Instead of answering, Yu Tan pulled him into his arms.
His voice cracked against the boy's shoulder. "I'm sorry. It's my fault."
Hu Xiaoyu froze.
He'd never seen Yu Tan like this—never heard those words from him.
The man held him tighter, like he was afraid of losing him. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…"
A'Jiu, gripping the steering wheel in front, thought his ears might be deceiving him.
Was his boss… apologizing?
Hu Xiaoyu squirmed. His wrists were still tied, pressed uncomfortably between them. "Untie me first."
When the cloth finally came off, red marks ringed his wrists—raw and angry with pale skin.
Yu Tan stared at them.
He'd been stabbed, shot, and beaten countless times in his life. But nothing had ever hurt quite like that sight.
His hands hovered, afraid to touch.
Hu Xiaoyu, seeing his expression, hurried to explain. "It doesn't hurt. Really."
He smiled a little, trying to soothe him.
But Yu Tan's hand moved anyway, trembling as it brushed the faint welts.
Then he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Hu Xiaoyu's eyelid—light, fleeting.
His voice was low, almost breaking. "It hurts."
Hu Xiaoyu blinked. "You're hurt? Where?" He started checking his arms, his chest—
Yu Tan caught his searching hand. "I won't force you again. Not to study. Not for anything. I know everything now. I'll handle it."
Hu Xiaoyu stared at him, heart thudding.
Not going to school—that part was good.
But what exactly had Yu Tan found out?