AD Chapter 9

This tattoo—

Qin Yi’s hand hovered above the keyboard as he stared at the photo, slowly typing: 【Is this your tattoo?】

【Shen°: Yes, I promised to show it to you first.】

【Shen°: This is my cat. Isn’t it adorable?】

Although he had anticipated it, Qin Yi couldn’t help but feel surprised when the truth was laid bare before him.

Shen° was Shen Du, and Shen Du was Shen°. They were the same person.

【Dreamy Affection: It’s very cute. It suits you well.】

【Shen°: I think so too. The tattoo artist did a great job. I’m very satisfied.】

A faint smile spread across Qin Yi’s face as he opened the photo again. His gaze lingered on the cat tattoo, the Adam’s apple on the other’s neck, and the delicate collarbone hollow where a faint, tiny mole resided.

Like a deviant, he zoomed in on every detail before smoothly saving the image to his album.

Boss Qin maintained an elegant posture and a composed, indifferent expression. From the surface, no one could detect any clue about his thoughts.

He even managed to squeeze in a discussion about work with the driver.

At the same time, someone who had just praised him in front of “others” finally responded to his message.

【°: Shen Du said your skills are terrible.】

After sending the message, Shen Du didn’t bother checking back.

He was afraid of being silenced.

Although he said that, in truth, Shen Du was quite satisfied with Qin Yi’s skills—after all, he had made Shen Yuanyuan look so adorable.

After taking a shower, Shen Du couldn’t help admiring himself in the mirror again. Overcome with a rare surge of the desire to share, he took some new photos, selected the best one, and posted it to his long-dormant Weibo account.

【@A Laidback Person’s Weibo: Tattoo [Image]】

Comments poured in quickly.

【OMG! It’s the real Shen-sama!! I’m swooning!!】

【Oh my god, is this really Shen-sama? Such a great physique, such great skin! But could the camera angle go a bit lower?】

【What the hell!! Hubby!!】

【Where’s the face!! The face is the most important part… Never mind, I’ll still swoon without it. 😍】

【I want to touch, I want to take, I want to lick.】

【Mom, this is what I deserve for staying up late.】

…Wait, how did this zombie-like account of his still have active followers?

Shen Du watched in disbelief as his follower count surged by 10,000 in just half an hour, with no sign of slowing down.

Who on earth was promoting him?

Staring at the flood of comments, Shen Du fell into Shen thought.

【Came here from the trending page. I’m not great with words, so let me ask—are these the blogger’s pecs? [Image]】

【This… is this the work of a screenshot pro? Are you guys browsing the internet with microscopes??】

【I heard there’s a hubby to claim here? Where do I line up?】

【Just asking—Is the blogger a top or a bottom?】

【Bottom, I think. His arms are so slim.】

【I can go with strong bottom and weak top too. His skin is so fair, his neck looks so good, he can’t be too bad-looking. 😍】

【You fangirls are something else. Everything’s BL to you… Okay fine, me too, hahaha.】

His vision darkened, and he quickly set the post to “Only Me” visibility.

The next morning, Shen Du was jolted awake by his alarm clock.

The alarm clock was a recommendation from Xu Qingluo. At the set time, a disk would automatically fly out, and the base would start screaming louder and louder. The only way to stop it was to retrieve the disk and return it to the base—a gadget designed for chronic snoozers like him.

Shen Du dragged himself out of bed with great difficulty, feeling like his soul was hovering above his head.

The disk had landed near the wardrobe. He squinted at it for a long time before finally locating it.

By now, the base was screeching at maximum volume. Covering his ears, Shen Du retrieved the disk, returning it to its base to end the morning chaos.

Checking his phone, he saw it was only 6 a.m.

What a foreign time.

Shen Du lay back down, attempting to fall asleep again. But every time he closed his eyes, the alarm’s blaring echoed in his mind, making it impossible to sleep.

The sun was just rising, and the streets were nearly empty, not even a dog in sight.

Standing in front of a freshly opened bun shop, Shen Du watched the busy shop owners with a blank expression, thinking, What’s the point of all this so early in the morning…

Eventually, he went into a convenience store that was still open.

The overnight clerk was dozing off at the counter, head propped on his hand, nodding off.

Shen Du grabbed a cup of instant noodles and a rice ball but slammed them onto the counter a bit too forcefully with a “thud.”

The clerk jolted awake, visibly startled. Already irritable from the overnight shift, he looked up, ready to snap, but froze at Shen Du’s intimidating expression.

The clerk scanned the items briskly. “Thirteen yuan and twenty cents.”

“I’ll scan it,” Shen Du replied.

The clerk glanced at Shen Du’s tattoo, his gaze dodging nervously as if afraid.

Shen Du’s scowl.

Stereotypes. What do you even know? What gang leader would tattoo such an adorable cat?

No taste.

Seeing the clerk was intimidated, Shen Du deliberately leaned closer.

Right in front of him, Shen Du unwrapped the instant noodles, dumped all the seasoning in, and pushed it towards him with a slow flourish.

The clerk froze before realizing what was happening. Flustered, he muttered, “One moment,” and hurriedly grabbed the noodles to fill them with hot water, sneaking glances back as if fearing Shen Du might come at him.

While waiting, Shen Du scanned the surroundings, deciding to eat in the store. The aroma of the instant noodles soon wafted over as the clerk returned.

Nodding in thanks, Shen Du said nothing, picked up his noodles, and started walking away, only to be called back.

“Wait a moment!”

He turned. “What is it?”

The clerk flinched at Shen Du’s sharp gaze and pointed hesitantly at the rice ball. “Um, do you want this heated?”

Only then did Shen Du remember the rice ball. Handing it over, he said, “Thanks.”

“No need, no need. Three minutes… you’ll have to wait three minutes.”

The clerk held up three fingers before turning to the microwave without looking back.

Watching the clerk’s retreating figure, Shen Du sat down and opened his phone, activating the front camera.

Not bad—he looked pretty handsome, not scary at all.

Shen Du wondered why the clerk was so scared of him.

As he was about to leave, he saw the clerk heading to the break room. A new clerk had already taken over at the register.

Passing by, Shen Du picked up two packs of gum.

The earlier clerk, now changed into civilian clothes, was playing on his phone as he walked out.

“Off work?”

“Yeah, off work.” Realizing something was off, the clerk looked up and saw the fierce-looking guy greeting him. His face twisted into a complex expression.

Shen Du nearly laughed. “Hey, what’s the matter? I don’t bite.”

“Catch.” He tossed over a pack of gum.

By then, Shen Du’s cranky mood had subsided, and he realized his earlier behavior had been a bit silly.

The clerk looked utterly bewildered.

Shen Du smiled but didn’t explain further. Instead, he brought his index and middle fingers together and saluted them, saying, “Good morning!”

The two store clerks were utterly baffled.

By now, the sun had risen, more people were out and about, and stores were opening one after another. It felt as though the entire city had come alive. Shen Du stretched lazily, realizing for the first time how refreshing the morning air was.

He strolled along the streets, enjoying the walk. Usually, he couldn’t be bothered to take more than a few steps, but now he found it oddly pleasant.

It must’ve been the nice weather.

He thought, Mornings really are the most human-friendly time of day.

That is, until he noticed a certain guy squatting by the street.

“—Xiang Nan?” Shen Du thought he might be mistaken.

The boy seemed highly attuned to his name. At the sound of it, he lifted his head, his expression sharp and clearly displeased, as if warning, I’m not happy; don’t mess with me. Paired with his current state, he looked downright intimidating.

No wonder no one had been walking through this part of the street. Shen Du couldn’t help but suspect he’d looked just as scary to the convenience store clerk earlier.

The figure before him was backlit, the face obscured. Xiang Nan squinted at him for a while.

Shen Du asked, “Are you nearsighted?”

Xiang Nan recognized his voice. Though his expression didn’t change, his tone grew familiar as he replied, “Oh, it’s you.”

He shifted aside, motioning for Shen Du to sit down.

Shen Du felt it was embarrassing and declined tactfully. “What are you doing sitting here?”

Xiang Nan, also curious why Shen Du was out and about so early, didn’t ask. Instead, he simply said, “I came early.”

Only then did Shen Du realize he had somehow wandered to the front of the tattoo shop.

How did I not notice it was this close before?

He checked the time. “Wow, didn’t think you were so passionate about your job.”

Showing up so early and all.

Xiang Nan gave him a strange look and said, “I haven’t slept.”

Shen Du: “…”

Great, killed the conversation right there.

So, he’d pulled an all-nighter and came straight to the shop to wait for his shift?

From what Shen Du remembered, Qin Yi’s shop opened at nine. It wasn’t even seven yet, which meant this guy had at least two hours to kill.

“And you—” Before Shen Du could finish, Xiang Nan pulled out his phone and asked, “Wanna play a game?”

“?”

“It’s so early.” Shen Du sat down beside him without hesitation. “Let’s do it!”

“What’s your username? I’ll add you.”

By eight-thirty, Niao Niao strolled over with lunch in hand, yawning endlessly.

She was so groggy that she almost walked straight into the shop.

“Hey, don’t go in there—there’s someone in the bushes.”

“Huh? Damn. There really is.”

“Trust your bro; I only speak the truth.”

What kind of riff-raff is squatting outside the shop like that? No manners…

Wait. Hold on.

Niao Niao took two steps back, stopping right beside the two “riff-raff.”

She rubbed her eyes.

“Xiang Nan! And Mr. Shen! Why are you two squatting outside the shop?” she exclaimed, now fully awake.

Her sudden outburst startled both of them, making them flinch.

Xiang Nan remained unfazed. Shen Du, however, felt utterly humiliated. Great, yet another dumb thing to add to the list.

Thankfully, the game had ended. Shen Du closed his phone and stood up, saying, “What a coincidence.”

Niao Niao hadn’t expected to see him there, let alone see someone as image-conscious as Shen Du crouching with Xiang Nan to play games.

Had Xiang Nan handed over his life savings or something?

She stifled her laughter as best as she could. “Don’t just squat here. Come in and have some water.”

Shen Du noticed her barely restrained grin and felt both his pride and dignity shatter.

Xiang Nan got up, dusted himself off, and took a few steps forward. Realizing no one was following, he turned around, his expression confused.

Shen Du leaned against a nearby railing, striking a particularly “cool” pose.

Xiang Nan asked, “Are you taking a picture?”

Shen Du replied, “My legs are numb. Let me rest a bit.”

“…”

Niao Niao poured water for the two of them and opened a window to air out the shop. Noticing that only Xiang Nan had come in, she asked, puzzled, “Did Mr. Shen leave?”

Xiang Nan thought about what Shen Du had said earlier but remained silent.

“Hey, are you guys hiring?” Shen Du entered the shop after a while, pointing at a small blackboard hanging by the door.

Niao Niao, busy wiping the counters, turned and replied, “Yeah, why? Interested, Mr. Shen?”

“I told you, stop calling me Mr. Shen. It makes me sound old. Just call me by my name.”

Xiang Nan looked at him and suddenly called out, “Shen Du.”

“You can’t call me that. Call me ‘brother.’”

So disrespectful.

Shen Du shot him a glare before responding, “What?”

Xiang Nan, quick to adapt, corrected himself smoothly, “Brother Shen, can I add you on WeChat? I asked Brother Qin for it, but he wouldn’t give it to me and told me to ask you myself.”

Worried Shen Du might refuse, the boy added, “Last time, you said I could find you anytime for games.”

“Wait a second.” Shen Du caught onto something. “You’re saying you asked Qin Yi for my WeChat, and he didn’t give it to you? Told you to come ask me yourself?”

Xiang Nan didn’t understand why Shen Du was asking this, but he still nodded. “Yeah, so will you give it to me?”

“Of course.” Shen Du suddenly smiled. Xiang Nan had no idea what was so funny.

When Niao Niao returned from washing the cloth, she saw Shen Du still staring at the small blackboard by the door. She approached and asked, “Shen Du, are you really interested?”

“Not really. Just thinking life’s been a bit dull lately.”

In that moment, Shen Du reflected on his situation.

Besides his college friends, he didn’t know anyone in Yun City. For two whole months, he’d be stuck in this place.

Eat, sleep, repeat. Maybe stream for a bit.

That’s way too boring.

The recruitment ad had reminded him: maybe he should find a summer job.