Mistaken Canary Chapter 13
Chapter 13
After hanging up the phone, Ying Tongchen quickly changed into fresh clothes in his room. He glanced at his reflection in the mirror—and stopped short.
A small, involuntary smile had crept across his face without him even realizing it. He tried to force his lips into a straight line, but the smile fought back, tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Once he was dressed, he felt a nagging sense of unease. Would always wearing a dress shirt make him seem too rigid?
Ying Tongchen glanced at the shirt that Zhuo Shu had bought for him, but the thought was quickly dismissed.
No, no. He'd always worn dress shirts. Changing his clothes for something he bought would seem too deliberate!
His gaze fell on the tie Zhuo Zi had given him.
…
Room 2808 again.
Ying Tongchen pressed the doorbell and listened to the footsteps approaching, a sense of déjà vu washing over him.
The door opened, and there he was, still in his bathrobe. Zhuo Shu spoke the same words that echoed from their first meeting: "Go take a shower."
Ying Tongchen nodded and walked in, feeling strangely at ease.
As he unfastened his tie, he noticed Zhuo Shu watching him intently.
"What's wrong?"
Zhuo Shu pointed at the tie. "Nice tie."
Ying Tongchen replied, "Thanks, it was a gift."
"I have one too," Zhuo Shu yawned and flopped onto the bed, "but someone took it."
"Who would take a tie?" Ying Tongchen asked, already unbuttoning his shirt as he went to the bathroom.
He heard nothing in response.
After his shower, Ying Tongchen dried his hair and made his way to bed. He saw Zhuo Shu was already fast asleep, exhaustion etched on his face, dark circles under his eyes—even his hair looked limp and tired.
He carefully lifted the covers and lay down beside him, gently tucking Zhuo Shu in. Even his slight movement disturbed the other.
Zhuo Shu reached out lazily, pulling Ying Tongchen closer by the waist, his eyes barely open. "Let’s not do it today," he mumbled.
Ying Tongchen hummed. "Sleep."
The air conditioning was a little too cold, but the warmth beneath the covers was enough to make up for it.
Zhuo Shu slept soundly, as if all his weariness had vanished into his dreams. When he woke up, he felt like a new man.
The sun was already up, its rays peeking through the curtains. Zhuo Shu slowly opened his eyes, and as his vision came into focus, he finally realized who he was holding.
Zhuo Shu: "!"
Why was he hugging someone else in his sleep? And why was he holding on so tightly?!
Not to mention his arm was numb—his whole body felt like it was going numb.
His mind rewound, revisiting the last moments before he'd fallen asleep. Ying Tongchen had looked at him with a soft expression, his eyes filled with warmth and his smile gentle, as if he were washing away all his weariness.
Case solved. It was Ying Tongchen who had seduced him.
But… who could resist such a temptation?
Zhuo Shu couldn't help but marvel at how experienced this person was. Lost in thoughts, he noticed Ying Tongchen's eyelids fluttering slightly, signaling that he was about to wake up.
Zhuo Shu quickly shut his eyes.
A moment later, he felt a shadow cast over him. Was this the moment for... the morning kiss?
Zhuo Shu opened his eyes in surprise, finding himself met by a pair of smiling eyes.
Ying Tongchen, a playful grin on his face, asked, "Pretending to sleep?"
"No," Zhuo Shu quickly averted his gaze, looking elsewhere.
Ying Tongchen did not pursue the matter further, shifting his body slightly. "If you're awake, get up."
Zhuo Shu's lips curled into a frown. "I don't want to get up."
Ying Tongchen chuckled, "You're already at this age and still want to laze in bed?"
This time, Zhuo Shu turned his head completely away.
A heartbeat later, Ying Tongchen let out a soft laugh.
Zhuo Shu’s pride took a hit and he shot him an angry glare. To his surprise, Ying Tongchen's laughter only grew louder.
"Do you know what a paper tiger is? You're just like one," Ying Tongchen said, unable to hold back his amusement.
Truly undisciplined and out of control! Zhuo Shu thought to himself that it was high time to show him what a real tiger looked like!
Zhuo Shu rolled over, propping himself up on one arm. His grip tightened on Ying Tongchen's waist. "Who are you calling a paper tiger?" he demanded, his voice low and forceful.
"Me, I suppose I’m referring to myself," Ying Tongchen replied, finding it even more amusing.
"Oh?” Zhuo Shu asked, playfully prying his legs apart. "Tell me, what exactly is a paper tiger like?"
Ying Tongchen blinked, sensing what was about to unfold. He hooked his legs around Zhuo Shu's waist and smiled sweetly, "Meow."
Zhuo Shu froze. "!!!"
No one could resist such a temptation!
Just as things were heating up, the landline phone on the table shrilled, shattering the mood.
Sweat glistened on Zhuo Shu's skin as he reached for the persistently ringing phone.
"Hello," he answered, his voice rough and interrupted.
"Hello, Mr. Zhuo. May I ask if you'd like to extend your stay?"
Zhuo Shu glanced at Ying Tongchen, whose eyes were bound by a tie. He suppressed his growing desire and responded in a deep voice, "Extend it."
He hung up and turned back, his voice low and challenging. "New position, hmm?"
Ying Tongchen opened his mouth to reply, but the sounds that came out were incoherent, lacking all semblance of clarity.
This time was longer, more intense. After three times, Ying Tongchen truly became a paper tiger, begging for release, his eyes red and pleading.
It wasn't a question of a poor student refusing to learn, but the sheer terror of a driven, underachieving student—a knowledge-hungry beast—making the teacher's life miserable. Yet, they couldn't scold or punish them, so the encouragement continued.
Ying Tongchen thought it wouldn’t be long before Zhuo Shu, this underachieving student, became a top student.
After their bath, they returned to bed for a short nap. They woke up at dusk.
Ying Tongchen rubbed his aching waist; the aftereffects were kicking in, and it felt like his body wasn’t his anymore.
The one responsible looked at him with a smug, self-satisfied air.
Ying Tongchen rolled over, turning his back, unwilling to face his current repulsive expression.
He opened WeChat and saw no important messages, then without looking back, said, "Give me your payment (QR) code. I'll transfer you half of the room fee."
Zhuo Shu: "?"
Zhuo Shu: "Why are you being polite with me?"
Ying Tongchen was confused for a few seconds, then rolled back over to face his repulsive expression. "So I shouldn't be polite?"
"Alright, alright," Zhuo Shu said, seeing through his little act. "Trying to stir up my pity, huh?" He smirked. " Well, I’m a VIP here. Just give my name next time, and wait for me here."
Ying Tongchen: "So this is the world of the rich, huh?"
Zhuo Shu: "Yeah, it's nothing, really."
Ying Tongchen went on, "So, what does a rich guy like you usually enjoy doing?"
Zhuo Shu raised an eyebrow and gave him a look. Was he trying to find out his hobbies again, in a roundabout way?
"Well... usually, I just like looking for you. What do you think I enjoy doing?"
Ying Tongchen paused for a few seconds, then said, "I like looking for you too. If you round it off, I guess I’m half a rich guy now."
Zhuo Shu curved his lips into a grin, his hand resting on his shoulder as he casually ruffled Ying Tongchen’s hair. "But it is quite a waste of money just to do it a couple of times at a hotel."
"Yes." Ying Tongchen agreed wholeheartedly, continuing to play with his phone.
Zhuo Shu nodded, then asked, "How'd it go with Mi Shu last time?"
"It went pretty well. I've got a good grasp of the details, more or less," Ying Tongchen said, still playing with his phone. He suddenly found the situation quite amusing.
He’d hooked up with a client earlier, and now, they were calmly discussing business as pillow talk.
"Didn’t expect you to be the CEO of K.W."
"Oh, so what do you think?" Zhuo Shu's tone was questioning, but there was a gleam of pride in his eyes, as though he was about to hear a stream of flattery from his lover. He wondered what expression he should wear to show that he remained unaffected, like someone who had weathered many storms.
"Nothing, afterall, I’ve never been there before."
"..." Zhuo Shu's lips twitched, a muscle in his cheek visibly twitching.
Half a minute later, Zhuo Shu looked at him in disbelief and quickly withdrew the arm he had around his shoulder. "You’ve never been there? The biggest local shopping mall, a paradise for influencers—how could you have never been?"
Ying Tongchen replied, "I don’t have money to spend on high-end products, and I’m not an influencer. What’s the point of going?"
"You could go to see me!" The moment those words left his mouth, both of them fell silent.
Zhuo Shu: "..."
Ying Tongchen: "..."
Zhuo Shu scratched his head, using the movement to avoid Ying Tongchen’s gaze. His eyes darted around as he muttered, "I meant, you could come find me, you know..."
As for what that ‘you know’ was, he hadn’t come up with an excuse yet.
Ying Tongchen, however, misunderstood his intention. "To do it at your company???"
"..." Zhuo Shu's ears turned slightly red.
It was simply too perverted.
Nevertheless, not a bad idea.
Zhuo Shu cleared his throat, changing the subject. "Mi Shu said they’re still looking for a house. You’ll need to wait a bit longer, but they should have it by National Day."
Although Ying Tongchen didn’t quite understand what house they were looking for, he figured it was probably for National Day preparations, so he didn’t press further.
Seeing that he didn’t have any opinions about the matter, Zhuo Shu asked, "What kind of house do you like?"
"Why are you asking this?"
"Is it so wrong to ask?"
Ying Tongchen blurted out, "Something big, expensive—there, happy now?"
After all, the unattainable is always so tempting.
"A villa?"
"That works. It’d be even better if it’s by the sea."
"A courtyard house?"
"Not bad. Best if it’s near the Forbidden City."
"......." Zhuo Shu lightly kicked his leg. "You’re young, but your taste sure isn’t small. Why don’t you just dream big? Everything’s possible in a dream."
Ying Tongchen thought to himself, ‘Aren't I already telling you of my dream? And it's you who brought me into it.’
Tsk, anyway, with just a flip of the tongue, it’s always the same—Zhuo Shu just wants to be in the right, doesn’t he?
Zhuo ‘Master of Dream Creation’ Shu: "You really should focus on being grounded. Stop fantasizing about these impossible things." Mainly because I don’t want to spend so much money on you.
Ying Tongchen couldn’t take it anymore. With all the strength he could muster, he kicked Zhuo Shu off the bed.