The first ray of morning sunlight was, as always, unbearably irritating—especially for Chen Mo, who'd barely slept at all the night before.
Ring ring ring—
The sudden ringtone dragged him up from his half-dream. Bleary-eyed, he rubbed at his eyes, fumbled for his phone, and answered.
"Hello… is that you, Chen…? Haaah… spare me. You put me through the wringer last night—I didn't sleep a wink."
"Yeah, yeah, don't start. I know I'm supposed to get up early, and as a man I shouldn't be so lazy… haaah… that's it, I'm hanging up."
Before Ch'en Hui-chieh could launch into another lecture, Chen Mo hurriedly ended the call, flopped back onto the soft bed, closed his eyes, and tried to steal a little more sleep.
Ever since Ch'en had yanked him out of the bar and hauled him home last night, what awaited him was an endless barrage of nagging and scolding.
Her mouth just kept going—opening and closing for hours without pause. And whenever Chen Mo so much as showed a hint of drowsiness, Ch'en would coldly raise her voice and fire off even harsher admonitions.
That torment didn't stop until around three or four in the morning, when her anger finally cooled off.
Now it was only eight. Chen Mo, on a brief "vacation" with nothing to do, really didn't want to get up.
But he couldn't not get up either—because if he slept in and Ch'en swung by around lunchtime only to find him still in bed, he'd be treated to another full sermon.
Oh, right. Exusiai had basically confessed to him yesterday.
"Too bad she doesn't hit my type."
After washing up, he lay on the couch and was just about to kill time on his phone when the screen lit up—revealing a wall of messages.
No surprises: all of them were from Exusiai.
Do you need breakfast? Want me to order delivery for you? Need help with anything?
A flood of suspiciously enthusiastic offers that left Chen Mo's eyes spinning.
She just wanted his address. Fine.
Without hesitation, he sent it.
Ping—
Almost instantly, Exusiai replied. Every line practically radiated joy as she kept circling around the real question—whether he was free today.
"She's acting like a total simp."
Chen Mo delivered that critique while absentmindedly stroking the scales on his tail.
Still, after thinking it over, he agreed to Exusiai's suggestion to go out. He was free today, and the LGD didn't need him for anything at the moment—so he might as well walk around Lungmen properly.
Just… not where Ch'en could find out.
After being lectured into numbness yesterday, he hadn't even had the chance to tell her that Exusiai was openly plotting to become her sister-in-law.
Somehow, it felt like saying it out loud would cause Exusiai—and all of Penguin Logistics—an impressive amount of trouble.
Ring ring ring—
Seeing the incoming call—with an avatar plastered in various dessert icons—Chen Mo glanced up at the clock in the living room and clicked his tongue.
"That was less than half an hour. That fast?"
With a faint sense of "simp shock," he answered—and Exusiai's excited voice immediately burst through the speaker.
"I'm at your door, Chen Mo!"
"…Sometimes what Ch'en says really is true."
At least when it came to how to interact with men, Exusiai genuinely needed to take lessons from Croissant.
Chen Mo sighed, walked to the entryway, and opened the door.
A vividly red bouquet was thrust straight toward his face.
"Morning! How'd you sleep last night?"
Chen Mo took a couple of looks at Exusiai's radiant grin—and the flower stems that were practically trying to stab him in the eyes—then accepted the bouquet with a nod.
He didn't know what kind of flowers they were, but one thing was obvious: they weren't cheap.
He glanced again at Exusiai—who'd clearly dressed up today—then flicked his tail and stepped aside.
"Not bad. Want to come in and sit for a bit?"
"Really?! Hehe—then I'll take you up on it!"
So the advice Croissant and the others gave her actually worked!
Taking in the pink-themed décor and furniture, Exusiai's heart pounded so hard she had to force herself to stay composed.
I got in that easily?
The internet says when you ask a man out, men usually act reserved and keep you waiting outside…
Sitting in the living room of the man she liked, Exusiai perched upright on the couch. Outwardly, she looked restrained and polite—yet inside, she was practically glowing with smug delight.
If Chen Mo weren't here, she would've already pulled out her phone, taken a bunch of selfies, then gone back to brag in Texas's face until the end of time.
"I'm going to change. Make yourself at home, Exusiai—treat it like your own office."
Chen Mo casually stripped off his sleepwear right in front of her. The moment his skin flashed into view, Exusiai's face turned bright red and she snapped her gaze away.
"Um—uh—privacy, Chen Mo. You should… be a little more careful."
And for some reason, his bare feet—white, clean, stepping across the floor—caught her attention even more than the rest.
I really want to touch them…
The instant that thought formed, Exusiai jolted and shook her head hard, trying to fling it out of existence.
No, no, no—what is wrong with me? That's definitely because I've been single too long. Yep. That has to be it.
She blamed the perverted fantasy on her "overactive desires," keeping her face turned away so Chen Mo wouldn't see her flaming cheeks.
Chen Mo, on the other hand, didn't notice anything. After checking his outfit, he waved it off nonchalantly.
"It's fine. If it's you, Exusiai, I don't mind."
He was wearing clothes underneath, after all. It was just… a lot of exposed skin.
But for some reason, Exusiai found that sentence weirdly hurtful.
The fleeting, intimate mood shattered on the spot. Exusiai, whose mind had been itching from sheer "male beauty damage," instantly forced herself back to rationality, lowering her head as if she'd been wronged.
Trying to win this guy over is going to be a long, hard road… Please don't let me disappoint Texas and the others.
After all, the money for the flowers and outfit had come from loans she'd begged from Texas and company.
"Alright," Chen Mo said. "Let's go."
When he walked out of the room fully dressed, he found Exusiai on the couch with her expression cycling through several emotional states in rapid succession.
"What's wrong?" he asked. "Need the bathroom?"
"No, no. I'm fine."
There was no way she could let Chen Mo find out about that earlier foot-related thought—she'd lose a massive chunk of favorability!
As someone living paycheck to paycheck, Exusiai had already resolved to start saving for a car and a house—and to stop looking at weird stuff for a while. Abstinence. Discipline. A new Exusiai.
You can do it, Exusiai!
Watching her stand by the door and psych herself up, Chen Mo could only scratch one of his horns in confusion and follow her out.
10:45 a.m.
On the loud, bustling streets of Lungmen's Upper City commercial district—
"So," Exusiai asked, "where are you planning to go today, Chen Mo?"
Having noticed how many eyes were secretly tracking him, Exusiai immediately tensed. Feeling oddly displeased, she deliberately walked right beside him, meeting those stares head-on.
As their arms swung, she kept brushing the back of his hand—again and again—until a crooked little idea took root.
Exusiai swallowed, stole a glance at the silver-haired, handsome man scanning the surroundings, and while he was thinking, she quietly reached toward his hand.
It's a date. Holding hands is normal, right…?
Chen Mo didn't notice her micro-schemes at all. He suddenly lifted his hand and pointed ahead—promptly crushing Exusiai's hopes.
"Let's eat first," he said. "Then we'll find somewhere fun."
"Let's go to that Shàngshǔ hotpot place. I want to see how Shàngshǔ hotpot compares to what I remember… Exusiai, what's wrong?"
He stopped and turned, looking at Exusiai—who'd already restored her cheerful smile—then asked curiously.
"Don't you like hotpot?"
"Hehe. If you like it, I like it," Exusiai said brightly. "Let's go, let's go! Today's on me—everything!"
Sorry, Texas… Looks like you'll have to bail me out again after this…
Smiling on the outside and crying on the inside, Exusiai slowed her pace a little. Seeing she seemed fine, Chen Mo simply reached out, grabbed her hand, and briskly pulled her along.
"Then hurry," he said. "I think you need a reservation there."
"Huh? Oh—okay…"
So warm… so this is what a man's hand feels like…
Dragged forward, Exusiai stared blankly at their interlocked hands—then quickly tightened her grip around the palm he'd practically delivered into her lap.
Every cent I spent today was worth it.
-------
My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
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