“All right, all right, get out.” Once she was done using him, Su Qian immediately chased Zhou Yang away. The kitchen was fairly spacious, but with three people inside it still felt cramped. Zhou Yang raised an eyebrow and turned to leave.

He always carried a faint scent of fir—very light. Tall and broad-shouldered, he stood out wherever he was, with an imposing presence. Once he left, the entire kitchen seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Su Hao picked up the frying pan and set it on the gas stove, washed her hands, then held the spatula and began frying the pancakes.

She added the egg mixture to the cake flour in proper proportions and stirred for a bit. Once the batter hit the pan, the aroma quickly drifted out. The smell was wonderful. Su Qian stood to the side, her eyes shining. She loved sweets, but she could never make them as well as Su Hao. Su Hao’s fingers were slender; the way she flipped the spatula looked like a beautiful painting.

About half an hour later—

The strawberry milkshakes were ready, and the pancakes were down to the final step. Su Hao sliced the strawberries into small pieces, tucked them into the pancakes, and added a swirl of cream. Su Qian immediately brought over a tray and carried the milkshakes and pancakes out. “Haohhao, go wash your hands and come out too. Perfect timing for afternoon tea.”

“Okay.” Su Hao untied her apron, turned on the faucet, and washed her hands. Afterward, she tidied up the messy countertop, neatly arranging everything before heading out.

Zhou Yang stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, buttoning his shirt collar while talking on the phone. His voice was low, carrying a lazy afternoon languor. Su Qian took a seat at the high table, and Su Hao followed. Su Qian waved at him. “Zhou Yang, want some?”

Zhou Yang glanced at them and gave a small wave of refusal. Then he turned back and continued his call. Su Qian clicked her tongue, handed a fork to Su Hao, and said, “He doesn’t eat sweets. We’ll eat.”

Su Hao hummed in response. She scooped some milkshake and poured it over the pancake. “It tastes better this way.”

“Really? Let me try.” Su Qian took a bite with her fork. The strawberry flavor burst in her mouth. “Mmm, delicious.”

Seeing how much Su Qian enjoyed it, Su Hao smiled and took a bite herself.

“Haohhao, what do you want for dinner?” Su Qian asked.

Su Hao paused. She had originally planned to leave after afternoon tea—she still had books she hadn’t finished reading. She hesitated for a moment when a shadow suddenly fell over her head. Then a man’s wrist, wearing a watch, reached over. Casually, he speared a piece of pancake with a toothpick. As he withdrew his hand, his arm brushed lightly against the soft skin near Su Hao’s ear.

“Tsk, so sweet.” Zhou Yang tossed the toothpick aside, tugged at his collar, and went straight upstairs.

Su Qian snapped at him, “If you don’t like it, don’t eat it. Why did you have to try it?”

“Just giving you some face,” the man scoffed. “Otherwise, you’d feel like stealing strawberries was pointless.”

His voice faded at the stairwell.

Su Qian was completely speechless.

This son of hers.

Zhou Yang had always had high emotional intelligence. If he wanted to charm a woman, he never missed. Su Qian had lost count of how many times she’d complained about it. She pulled Su Hao along and continued eating.

Before long, Zhou Yang came back downstairs with a suit jacket draped over his arm and a tie around his neck. With his usual nonchalant air, he said, “I’m not coming back for dinner tonight.”

“Probably won’t be back to sleep either.”

“What are you doing?” Su Qian asked.

“A reception,” Zhou Yang replied as he grabbed his car keys and went to put on his shoes.

His tie wasn’t fully done yet, hanging loosely to one side. His collar was still open, his collarbones faintly visible. Su Qian gave an “oh,” not thinking much of it, then asked casually, “Taking a date?”

With a click, the door opened. Zhou Yang’s low voice came through. “What do you think?”

He laughed lightly. “No need to worry about it.”

Then he left, the door closing with a bang.

Su Qian couldn’t be bothered with him. When she turned back and saw Su Hao, she froze for a second. Su Hao was calmly eating her pancake, a ring of cream still on her lips. Seeing this, Su Qian finally relaxed. Of course she hoped Su Hao could become the Zhou family’s daughter-in-law—but with Zhou Yang’s behavior, maybe not.

This was a conclusion she’d reached recently, after getting to know Shen He better. Why choose a playboy when there was someone more steady?

That way, Su Hao and Zhou Yang could at least remain friends. Zhou Yang treated his friends well. After thinking it over, Su Qian asked, “Su Hao, how do you feel about Zhou Yang at work lately?”

Su Hao bit into a strawberry and thought for a moment.

“Zhou Yang? I haven’t seen him much, so I’m not really sure.”

But in the company group chats, people did talk about him. They said he usually looked like a rich young master—carefree and flippant. His presence only really became apparent when he was working, sometimes even sharp. Female employees only dared to sneak glances at him.

Or approach him when he was in a good mood.

When he was angry, though, everyone avoided him and didn’t dare make a sound.

“Really? No private gossip?” Su Qian asked.

“No,” Su Hao shook her head.

Su Qian nodded and asked again, “Do you think Zhou Yang is a good friend?”

Su Hao chewed on the strawberry.

Her mouth filled with sweet juice—it was delicious. She thought of how he’d arranged things for her these past few days, quietly considerate, attentive without being obvious. “He’s pretty good.”

“That’s great!” Su Qian let out a big sigh of relief.

Her son really did treat his friends well.

Even if he wasn’t romantically interested in Su Hao, as long as he regarded her as a friend, that was enough.

After afternoon tea, Su Hao stayed with Su Qian to watch a mermaid movie. It was quite scary. Su Hao was afraid—but Su Qian was even more so—so Su Hao had no choice but to be brave.

In the end, she couldn’t leave anyway. Su Qian cooked dinner herself that evening, and after Su Hao finished eating, the Zhou family driver sent her back to Huahui Residential Complex.

As soon as she opened the door, her phone rang.

She looked down.

Shen He: Haohhao, I’m coming to Licheng tomorrow!

Su Hao: Okay.

Shen He: Wait for me.

Su Hao: Mm. Perfect timing—it’s the weekend.

Shen He: Exactly, exactly.

A black Volvo sped down the road, the interior faintly filled with the scent of alcohol. Soon, the car arrived at Yuwan Shanshui. Zhou Yang loosened his tie and stepped out. His long legs were wrapped in black dress pants. He leaned against the car door, resting his chin on his hand, letting the alcohol dissipate.

Tonight, that bastard Li Yi had kept forcing drinks on him.

All hard liquor.

“Sir?” The driver stepped forward, opened the villa door, then turned back to call him. Zhou Yang’s narrow eyes swept over, carrying a chill in the night—but it quickly faded. He curled his lips into a smile. “No need to help. I’m not drunk.”

“That bit of alcohol can’t take me down.”

He pressed his tongue against his cheek, took the keys from the driver, grabbed his jacket, and walked toward the villa. “You can head back. Take the other car.”

“Yes, sir.” The driver stood where he was, watching Zhou Yang’s tall figure disappear into the villa before turning to leave.

Only a few lights were on inside. Zhou Yang casually set down the car keys and jacket, poured himself a glass of water, and drank it. Late at night, he and Xu Dian both disliked having unnecessary staff in the villa. After the water, he was mostly sober. Zhou Yang went upstairs, idly fiddling with his phone.

Soon, he reached the master bedroom.

He tossed the phone aside and went into the bathroom to shower.

Steam climbed up the walls. A while later, Zhou Yang emerged in black pajamas. Water droplets rolled down his neck and disappeared into his collar. The smell of alcohol was gone, leaving only a faint scent of soap mixed with the room’s fragrance. He lifted the blanket, lay down, and fell asleep.

In his dreams—

Something swayed gently. Tender willow branches wrapped around his arm. The man turned over, brows knitting together, as though he were pushing many people away in his dream.

Yet he couldn’t pull that soft, slender waist into his arms.

Dawn crept in.

Zhou Yang woke up, irritated, and sat up. He took a mint strip and placed it under his tongue. His phone beeped. He glanced over.

Wen Zeli: Tsk, Shen He ran off to Licheng on another business trip. I really should thank you—for introducing my brother-in-law to that Jiangnan beauty. Dinner’s on me next time.

Zhou Yang: Oh? He came again?

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