Bo Jin hadn’t expected to be exposed so abruptly and froze in place.
His original intention was to spend more time together, gradually easing their daily interactions into a more peaceful rhythm. Once things felt right, he planned to reveal his feelings. Whether rejected or accepted, he would have done his best.
But now… the timing was off, and he was unprepared.
Pei Shiyi couldn’t make sense of it, asking himself inwardly: Did I flirt with him? Probably not. Bickering doesn’t count, right? Otherwise, it would be too unfair.
He sighed sincerely this time: At first, he and Bo Jin were like fire and water, clashing whenever they met. Later, they gradually grew more harmonious, exchanging barbs without real anger. Pei Shiyi slowly stopped seeing him as a rival and instead treated him like a close friend who traded jabs. Until recently…
Right, recently.
Pei Shiyi said, “Uh, is it because of the birds? I totally get the fluffy obsession…”
“It has nothing to do with the birds,” Bo Jin lowered his gaze.
Pei Shiyi: “Huh?”
Bo Jin: “It has nothing to do with a fluffy obsession. I’m not that shallow.”
Pei Shiyi didn’t like multitasking, so while his mind raced to process the idea that “Bo Jin actually likes him”, his words slipped out without filtering, and he even followed up: “Right, right, not that shallow. I heard that your kind, the Zhulongs, are different from ordinary dragons. You don’t have that ‘universal love’ where everything can be a spouse.”
Bo Jin: “…”
Despite the awkwardness of the moment, Bo Jin felt a pang in his chest from Pei Shiyi’s unintentional straight-man retort. He covered the lower half of his face with one hand and coughed softly.
Pei Shiyi also realized how clueless he had just sounded and rubbed his forehead. “I’ve really never been with a man… Give me a moment to process this.”
In his youth, he loved showing off his feathers and could receive handkerchiefs from admiring ladies until his hands were full. Fortunately, although he enjoyed attention, his nature was relatively steadfast. Even when cornered and publicly confessed to, if it wasn’t suitable, he could gracefully and tactfully decline.
But Bo Jin was different! They had bickered for so long, finally turning conflict into harmony, almost like brothers. Yet, upon peeling back the layers of the Zhulong’s heart, he discovered the other had different feelings for him.
Pei Shiyi held back his refusal, glancing at Bo Jin before silently swallowing his words—
Perhaps out of extreme awkwardness, Bo Jin avoided Pei Shiyi’s gaze, his eyes downcast. Usually cold and detached, almost freezing, and indifferent to others, he now frowned slightly, revealing only a sliver of his gaze, showing a hint of…
Well, he just looked rather pitiable.
Pei Shiyi had to admit he was just like those superficial men out there. This unlucky Zhulong happened to fit his aesthetic perfectly.
Bo Jin waited a few minutes. Pei Shiyi’s gaze kept drifting over him, but he remained silent. Bo Jin finally looked up: “Keeping me hanging?”
Pei Shiyi: “No, I’m not that shallow either. I just… have a question.”
Bo Jin: “Ask.”
Pei Shiyi said, “If it’s not for the fluff, then what is it? For the sake of bickering with me?”
“Even if it’s bickering, only you and I do it. No one else would,” Bo Jin gestured for Pei Shiyi to let him finish first. “But I don’t have a habit of arguing with people. As for you…”
Pei Shiyi thought silently: Director Bo really is a master of dramatic pauses.
Bo Jin struggled several times to find the right words. At his age, he had never spoken such difficult lines: “There’s really no specific reason. If I had to say why, it’s because I see you as good.”
It has nothing to do with how you treat others. It’s you as a person who stirs the heart.
You’re just good, in every way. Good looks, a thoughtful and considerate nature, handling everything with such ease and grace, smooth in social interactions, able to take a joke yet always maintaining boundaries and commanding respect. Isn’t that what liking someone is all about? The very first stirrings of affection in this world, where do all those fancy reasons come from?
It’s simply “I see you as good”.
Pei Shiyi had received countless love letters over the years. Some long, flowing poems, others brief notes like “I greatly admire your grace”. None had ever moved him. He never expected to be completely undone today by just five words.
Those five words melted Pei Shiyi’s heart: “…You win.”
Bo Jin had already prepared himself for rejection.
Although Pei Shiyi had recently cooled off toward him, he couldn’t exactly say he was being treated with special favor.
Bo Jin was taken aback: “What do you mean?”
Pei Shiyi: “I mean, I think you’re not bad either, Director Bo. Actually, you’ve always been quite to my taste.”
Bo Jin raised his hand and gently brushed Pei Shiyi’s cheek. Pei Shiyi arched an eyebrow but didn’t pull away. Bo Jin’s fingers drifted to the side of his neck as he leaned in, pausing near Pei Shiyi’s lips before tilting his head slightly to plant a kiss on his cheek. “A token of affection. You can’t take it back.”
Pei Shiyi clasped Bo Jin’s wrist in return. “I won’t regret it. Why would I regret gaining a beauty?”
…
When Boss Pei and Director Bo came downstairs from the third floor, the furry little ones could clearly sense that the atmosphere between the two adults in the house had changed.
While the two were preparing the cats’ afternoon snacks, Tong Qian clung to the doorframe, peeking in for quite a while before darting back to the first floor. He immediately caught Yin Zhou, who was about to climb onto the cat tree.
Yin Zhou had just leaped into the air when Tong Qian grabbed his tail, causing him to tumble down and land squarely on Tong Qian. The two furballs ended up stacked on top of each other like a fluffy rug.
This drew gasps from the customers:
“Ah! Is Baby Yin Zhou okay? Tong Qian, you rascal! Bullying Yin Zhou again.”
“Is Tong Qian alright? Yin Zhou isn’t exactly light. Haha.”
“Tong Qian’s paws are so mischievous! Yin Zhou was just trying to climb the cat tree, and he had to pull him down by the tail.”
Yin Zhou twisted around, spreading his paws to pin down Tong Qian, who was trying to wriggle free. “Meow—”
What are you doing? You’d better have an explanation!
Tong Qian, trapped underneath, let out a series of yowls: “Aow aow aow!”
Listen to me! Listen! Boss and the director—something’s up!
Director Bo was one thing, but Boss was the most important person to Yin Zhou. His ears perked up. “Meow?”
What about Boss? Did Director Bo bully him?
Tong Qian pulled him closer and quickly whispered a string of meows into Yin Zhou’s ear.
Just now, Director Bo was cooking in the kitchen, and Boss stood there watching for a long time. Then Director Bo picked up a bite of food and fed it to Boss! And the key thing is—Boss actually ate it! This is just too shocking!
Yin Zhou was utterly confused. “Meow?”
Isn’t that normal? When Boss opens a new can of food, he always picks out a bite to let them taste it first.
Tong Qian hooked a paw around him, turning Yin Zhou so they were both facing away from the customers, who were gathered around them murmuring, “So cute!” and “Ah, I’m dying!”
They left behind two large striped tails, which were eagerly stroked back and forth by the impatient customers.
“Yin Zhou’s tail feels so good, wuwuwu.”
“Both of them have stripes, haha. At first glance, they even look like a couple?”
“Wait, what does ‘looking like a couple’ mean?”
“Uh… it means they look alike, haha.”
Tong Qian paid no attention to what the customers were saying, muttering to himself with all his heart: “Meow meow meow—”
This is different, you know. Think about it, the boss treats us like his sons. But does Director Bo treat the boss like his son? They’re the same generation! You mentioned feeding him vegetables—what kind of relationship would allow someone to do that?
Yin Zhou was dazed: “Meow?”
What kind of relationship?
Oh, how can this poor kid be so dense?
Tong Qian: “Meow!”
This is a lo—
A meow got stuck in his throat as Tong Qian felt the scruff of his neck tighten. The next moment, all four paws left the ground, and he landed in a familiar, beloved embrace. The boss’s gentle voice sounded in his ear: “Sweetheart, what were you talking about with Yin Zhou? Tell me, too?”
Tong Qian feigned weakness: “Meow—”
I’m just a delicate little kitten.
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Maria Lian On CFRFGC Chapter 104