Deep in the Night - Chapter 10

DITN: Chapter 10

The next day, Gu Yuan stood in his office, staring at the white cloth hanging on the wall to cover the inner window.

There were only three nails, loosely hammered in, crooked and wobbling as if they might fall out at any moment. After a moment’s consideration, Gu Yuan couldn’t be bothered to fetch a claw hammer. He simply gripped one of the nails and yanked it out with brute force.

Hisss!

The sharp edge of the nail sliced across his finger. He sucked in a sharp breath and put the cut tip in his mouth.

Just then, someone knocked on the window across from him. Gu Yuan lifted the white cloth and saw Fang Jin standing in the opposite office, pressed against the glass, looking at him innocently.

Gu Yuan flung open the inner window and glared down. “Are you always spying on me like this…?”

Fang Jin said nothing. He handed over a nail puller, then silently closed the window and retreated.

Gu Yuan: “……”

Five minutes later, Gu Yuan had removed all three nails. Pressing the white cloth down with one hand, he lifted a corner and peeked into the opposite office. Fang Jin was sitting intently at his computer, completely absorbed in his work, as if he hadn’t noticed a thing.

Gu Yuan set down the corner of the cloth, waited a moment, and then lifted it again. Fang Jin remained perfectly still, not even shifting his posture.

After repeating this three times, Gu Yuan finally removed the white cloth with confidence, casually rolled it up, and tossed it into the corner, as if the whole incident had never happened. He then returned to his desk as if nothing had occurred.

—

CEO Gu’s campaign to divide and conquer his own company, establishing armed fiefdoms, had finally come to an end. The spoils of war were an unequal employment contract that essentially prevented Assistant Fang from resigning for ten years.

The upside was that CEO Gu had finally returned to his usual pattern of delegating all tasks to Assistant Fang. The secretarial staff breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Fang Jin’s work capabilities were flawless, even by the most demanding standards. This corresponded to the significant informal power that came with his position. In large corporations, it wasn’t uncommon for executive assistants to be promoted to department heads or even transferred to lead subsidiaries. Yet Fang Jin remained diligent in his duties, never volunteering opinions unless asked. Even after observing him for a long time, Gu Yuan had never detected any signs of professional ambition or political aspirations in him.

This was actually quite unusual. Fang Jin had the education, experience, and background to succeed, and a lack of ambition didn’t fit the typical personality traits of someone his age. Even Young Master Gu, who had been tempered by family infighting to become exceptionally tolerant, harbored deep ambition beneath the surface. Gu Yuan had always believed that a man in his career-building phase who didn’t strive to climb the ladder had failed. Accepting poverty and contentment was a waste of air, an insult to the nation and the party, and even a betrayal of the tuition paid to the school—no better than a useless freeloader.

Yet when it came to Fang Jin, Gu Yuan applied a different standard, finding this attitude perfectly acceptable.

Fang Jin’s contentment with the status quo demonstrated his reliability, and his lack of ambition showed his devotion to his work. What a dependable employee!

The company’s collaboration project with the German shipyard had finally reached the delivery phase. That evening, the company hosted a banquet at a five-star hotel to honor their German counterparts. Gu Yuan attended the banquet with several colleagues, including Fang Jin. The German technical executives proved to be remarkably heavy drinkers, downing red and white wine indiscriminately until the entire group of foreigners were thoroughly sloshed. Gu Yuan’s subordinates were completely defeated, and even he had to retreat to the restroom multiple times to splash cold water on his face.

Fang Jin waited in the hallway outside the restroom and asked, “Shall I take you home?”

Gu Yuan stared at Fang Jin’s calm, composed face, as if a Godzilla had suddenly landed in People’s Municipal Government Square. “How much have you had to drink?”

“About the same as you.”

“You’re not drunk?”

Fang Jin replied, “Just move around a bit to sober up.”

Gu Yuan covered his face with his hand, then shook his head vigorously after a moment. “Alright, let’s book a few rooms and toss the Germans in. Anyone from our side who wants to stay can stay. I have to be at the company early tomorrow, so I won’t be going home tonight. I’ll just stay here.”

Fang Jin nodded and proceeded to make arrangements. Part of this five-star hotel was invested in by the Gu family, so a simple word to the manager took care of this minor matter. Naturally, a supervisor led a team of staff members to assist with everything. Gu Yuan had a long-term reserved room here, complete with toiletries, making it convenient to stay overnight.

After retrieving the room keycard, Fang Jin helped Gu Yuan to the room to rest. He then organized the negotiation materials for the next day, arranging them neatly on the desk. However, as Gu Yuan stood in the middle of the room, about to undress and take a shower, he suddenly stopped. “Fang Jin.”

“CEO Gu?”

“Forget it. Leave it there. I’ll tidy up in the morning.”

Fang Jin paused, but didn’t press further. He nodded and quietly withdrew.

Gu Yuan only exhaled after the door closed. He stripped and walked into the bathroom, with his upper body completely bare.

In the past, he’d changed clothes, washed up, and even called Fang Jin to deliver underwear to the gym locker room—never thinking twice about it. After all, Fang Jin was his assistant. In his youth, Young Master Gu had even pulled the cringe-worthy stunt of calling his assistant to deliver condoms when he’d checked into a hotel with a young model. At the time, he’d done it with a self-righteous air, convinced there was nothing wrong with it.

But now, as he tried to undress, his alcohol-fogged brain suddenly felt uneasy.

Is it really appropriate to show my naked body to Fang Jin?

Standing in the luxurious hotel bathroom, Gu Yuan couldn’t figure out what exactly felt wrong. Fang Jin might have been branded in his mind as a crybaby, but surely he wouldn’t get upset enough to cry over this.

Could it be that I’ve lost confidence in my physique?

Gu Yuan studied himself in the full-length mirror. Six-pack abs, v-cut, and washboard abs—everything was there. Even though he hadn’t been to the gym as frequently since returning from England, he still maintained a model-level physique.

…My appearance is still top-notch. I could beat Gu Yang that bastard by eighteen streets. Nodding to himself, Gu Yuan stepped into the shower.

———

Fang Jin left the room, bypassing his own and going straight downstairs to the lobby manager. He requested ingredients from the hotel kitchen—dried tangerine peel, sandalwood, mung beans, lily bulb, and rock sugar—intending to brew a pot of hangover soup for Gu Yuan the next morning.

A short while later, he was coming back up with the provisions. The moment the elevator door opened, he was startled by a sudden THUD!—the sound of a heavy object striking the wall—followed by a clear, desperate plea: “Help… help me!”

The voice sounded faintly familiar. Fang Jin turned his head, hearing frantic footsteps and furious cursing rapidly approaching. It seemed someone was being chased. Fang Jin instinctively leaned against the corner of the wall. Just then, a figure darted out from around the bend. It was someone he recognized: Xiao Yao!

The little-known, 18th-tier artist had vanished after being “returned” by Gu Yuan, and Fang Jin hadn’t expected to run into him here. Xiao Yao’s clothes were dishevelled, his face flushed, and he reeked strongly of alcohol. Seeing Fang Jin, he froze for a moment, then lunged forward like he’d found a savior: “Assistant Fang! S-save me! Save me!”

“Where do you think you’re running, you little brat!”

A middle-aged man stumbled out in pursuit, his face beet red, his eyes bulging. He was visibly, thoroughly drunk. Fang Jin’s gaze fell upon the prominent bulge in the man’s trousers, and his eye twitched involuntarily.

“I-I already paid you. What are you playing high and mighty for…” The man lunged and grabbed Xiao Yao, hauling him by the hair while the younger man struggled and shrieked. Xiao Yao, desperately shouting Fang Jin’s name, flailed his limbs to break free, and in the chaos, unexpectedly tripped the man, sending both of them crashing onto the hallway floor.

Fang Jin did not step forward; in fact, he retreated half a step, frowning slightly.

“Aah aah aah—” Xiao Yao scrambled up and ran toward the elevator, his delicate, handsome face streaked with tears. The man shakily got to his feet, clearly enraged. He spun around and lunged at Xiao Yao like a mad bull, knocking him down, then grabbed his hair with one hand and delivered a brutal slap with the other!

—Crack!

—Xiao Yao was nearly breathless from the blow. Before he could recover from the dizziness, the man grabbed him by the neck and began dragging him toward the room.

Finally, Fang Jin shouted, “Stop!”

“Who the hell are you to intervene—” the man cursed, raising his hand to shove Fang Jin, who was striding forward. In a flash, Fang Jin seized the outstretched hand and twisted it hard and fast. They heard a crisp sound from the wrist bone—kacha!

The man instantly howled in pain, rearing up like a provoked bull and charging. Fang Jin quickly retreated several steps, and the instant the man rushed him, he precisely grasped his arm, pivoted, executed a clean, swift over-the-shoulder throw, and flung him through the air!

Thump!

The man crashed heavily onto the floor, not even managing a groan, and instantly passed out.

Fang Jin rubbed his shoulder and turned to the stunned Xiao Yao: “What happened to you?”

“…” Xiao Yao stammered, “Assistant… Assistant Fang, you are truly a-a-amazing…”

“I only know that one move,” Fang Jin admitted. “Nothing more. Where is your manager?”

Xiao Yao’s eyes went red, and he mumbled, unable to speak, which confirmed Fang Jin’s suspicion of what had occurred. But it was too late to dwell on it. He grabbed one of the man’s arms, tugged a few times, found he couldn’t move the bulk, and then instructed Xiao Yao, “Come and help.”

Xiao Yao shuffled over, walking with a strange, awkward gait. Together, they strained and struggled to drag the unconscious man back into his own room. As they entered, Fang Jin glanced around: the room was a chaotic mess, the large bed was rumpled, and the air was thick with the heavy scent of liquor and a strange, unpleasant sweetness.

“My-my manager told me to come accompany him, but he’s a pervert…” Xiao Yao stammered hysterically to Fang Jin, trembling violently. One side of his face was fire-red from the slap, and speaking made him wince, almost bringing him to tears: “W-why didn’t you come and save me just now? Wuwuwu… It was s-so scary…”

Because I needed to make sure you weren’t trying to set me up with a honey trap.

Fang Jin thought this but did not say it. He merely dropped the man onto the floor, rubbed his red wrist, and asked, “What do you do now? Should I call a car to send you back?”

Xiao Yao wept, clinging tightly to Fang Jin’s hand like a drowning man grasping a log: “Assistant Fang, p-please save me again…”

“I can’t buy you out of your company,” Fang Jin replied, trying to suppress a wry smile.

But Xiao Yao shook his head. Whether from the pain of the slap or sheer shame, his entire face was crimson:

“N-no, it’s not that. I took, I took that… that aphrodisiac…”

Fang Jin was stunned for a long moment. With nowhere else to take him, he had no choice but to bring Xiao Yao to his own room, next door to Gu Yuan’s.

His first instinct was to take Xiao Yao to the hospital, but the beautiful young man adamantly refused, saying it would ruin his career if this “black history” ever came out after he became famous. Fang Jin was tempted to point out that given his current status, becoming famous would be difficult, but then he thought: if he personally took Xiao Yao to the hospital, he would be far too involved. Who knew what kind of background the drunken man he’d just beaten up had?

Fang Jin dragged Xiao Yao into the bathroom, grabbed the showerhead, turned the cold water to maximum, and sprayed him down without regard for his resistance. Xiao Yao initially struggled and yelled desperately, but after a few seconds, he was shivering uncontrollably, his teeth chattering, and he was quickly silenced.

Fang Jin was thoroughly splashed, his shirt practically soaked through. He tossed the showerhead to Xiao Yao, motioning for him to continue, then kicked off his shoes and socks. Barefoot, he walked to the bedroom and pulled his laptop out of his bag.

Fang Jin had been trained as an assistant from a young age, and the foremost principle of being an assistant was to never bring trouble to your employer.

If this person hadn’t been Xiao Yao, he might not have intervened. Are you kidding? Unfair things happen every day in the world, and besides, since he chose this profession, he should have anticipated a day like this. Why didn’t he run away when his manager brought him to the hotel?

Since things had escalated, he had to make sure all subsequent problems were eliminated immediately.

Fang Jin opened his computer and logged into an online command system using Gu Mingzong’s account.

This was a system Gu Mingzong used to issue instructions to his private security, medical, and financial teams based on authorization level. Fang Jin used to have an account, but it was revoked after he was reassigned to Gu Yuan’s company. Now, for occasional trivial matters related to Gu Yuan—like borrowing security guards for an event or temporarily chartering a small helicopter—he would log in with Gu Mingzong’s account.

There was no intent to deceive; Gu Mingzong saw a record of all commands issued daily but never paid much attention to it. In a way, he tacitly permitted this limited use of resources by his eldest son.

Fang Jin found the security contact in the system and sent a message:

“Who is staying in room XXX at the Jin Rui Hotel tonight?”

Room XXX was the drunken man he had just struck. A reply came back within minutes: “CEO Gu, we have contacted the hotel. We will reply in five minutes.”

Just then, he heard footsteps from the bathroom. Fang Jin quickly minimized the interface and looked back: “What is it?”

Xiao Yao had stripped off his top and was wearing a large bath towel. His face was fiery red, his chest heaving violently. The gaze he fixed upon Fang Jin was one of bewildered frenzy:

“Assistant… Assistant Fang, can you please help me…”

“Are you kidding me!” Fang Jin snapped. He stood up, dragged Xiao Yao back into the bathroom, grabbed the showerhead, and turned the cold water to maximum power, spraying him. However, the drug seemed to have made Xiao Yao incredibly agitated. This time, his struggle was ten times fiercer. The ice-cold water had no effect on him; instead, it seemed to further excite his already frenzied nerves, and he tried to snatch the showerhead!

With a loud CRASH, Fang Jin slipped and was pulled down by Xiao Yao. The showerhead clattered against the side of the tub, spraying water onto the wall.

“You—”

“Assistant Fang, I like you,” Xiao Yao cried incoherently, clinging tightly to Fang Jin like an octopus. “Only you saved me. Can you help me one more time? I feel like I’m going to die from this pain…”

“If you don’t stop, I’m throwing you out!” Fang Jin was genuinely furious for once. He shoved Xiao Yao away violently and reached for the showerhead again. Water was splashing all over his head and face, his clothes were beyond soaked, and he was utterly dishevelled.

Seeing that Fang Jin was about to spray him with cold water again, Xiao Yao, in a moment of desperation, threw caution to the wind and frantically began to pull off his tight jeans. He only managed to peel them halfway down before lunging forward and pressing a large expanse of his skin against Fang Jin’s. The scorching heat of his body, transferred through the cold, drenched fabric, sent a chilling sensation up Fang Jin’s spine. “I said stop, right now!”

But Xiao Yao’s mind was a burning mess. In his delirium, he only saw how handsome and courageous this man was, far surpassing the countless unsavory characters he had encountered in the entertainment industry. Fang Jin was composed and reliable, like a guardian angel. The more he thought, the hotter his head felt, his heart fluttering. He desperately wanted to pounce on Fang Jin, kiss him fiercely, and cling to him completely.

In the struggle, two buttons popped off Fang Jin’s shirt. He kicked Xiao Yao away several times, but the other boy kept rushing back as if he felt no pain. The cold shower was completely useless. Fang Jin couldn’t bring himself to strike him hard, and he was almost pinned to the bathroom floor several times. The last time, Xiao Yao even managed to slip a hand under his shirt:

“D-don’t chase me away. I like you, Assistant Fang, I like you…”

Fang Jin was finally truly enraged. Though his physique and strength were average, dealing with Xiao Yao was certainly not a problem. He no longer cared about hurting the beautiful young man who was both crying and screaming.

Just as he was about to raise his leg and deliver a hard kick to send Xiao Yao flying backward, he suddenly felt the weight on him vanish. Xiao Yao was lifted into the air, and Fang Jin saw a black-faced Gu Yuan standing behind him.

Xiao Yao was too confused to recognize Gu Yuan. The next second, he was thrown violently away, crashing with a thud onto the floor outside the bathroom!

“—Ah!”

Agony swallowed all of Xiao Yao’s senses. He felt like every bone in his body was shattered, and he momentarily lost consciousness. Gu Yuan seemed far from satisfied. Rolling up his sleeves, he started to walk toward the boy, but Fang Jin stopped him abruptly: “Wait!—He was drugged!”

Gu Yuan looked back and saw Fang Jin sitting on the bathroom floor, thoroughly drenched from head to toe. His shirt, which had several buttons ripped off, clung to his body, and water dripped from the tips of his dark hair.

In the light, his skin, having been soaked, appeared unusually translucent. On the collarbone beneath his shirt, faint blue veins were visible, creating an illusion for Gu Yuan that he might be able to see straight through to the bone.

“…” Gu Yuan stood motionless for a moment, then coldly asked, “What is going on?”

Fang Jin noticed Gu Yuan staring intently at him, his expression volatile, and his heart sank.

“I ran into him by chance in the hallway. He was brought here by his manager to be sold, and someone gave him drugs…”

Fang Jin calmly and clearly recounted the event. When he mentioned hitting the drunk man, Gu Yuan’s face shifted, and he asked, “Did you go to his room to search for a name card?”

Fang Jin shivered slightly and said, “No, but I…”

He was about to say he was going to ask the front desk for the man’s name and background, but then Gu Yuan strode over, snatched a large white bath towel, wrapped it around Fang Jin’s head and shoulders, and then used his hand to help him up.

Gu Yuan’s hand was extremely warm, and Fang Jin, who was chilled to the bone, instantly shivered.

He was a little afraid that Gu Yuan was angry, but when he sneaked a glance, Gu Yuan’s face was utterly blank, his brows sharp as swords, his thin lips tightly pressed beneath his high nose bridge. It was impossible to read his mood.

Xiao Yao was groaning on the floor outside the bathroom, trying to get up. As Gu Yuan passed, he casually kicked him down again, a jarring thud that made Fang Jin’s heart jump. But he didn’t dare speak. He was half-supported, half-coerced into the bedroom, pushed onto the bed, and then Gu Yuan turned to the side table and switched on the warm air conditioning.

“Dry your hair and change your clothes,” Gu Yuan commanded, his back to him. “Hurry up, you’ll catch a cold like that.”

Fang Jin suddenly realized how cold he was and was about to shiveringly reach for a blanket when he heard a ding from the laptop on the desk.

It was the notification sound of the security team sending a reply through the system. Fang Jin just looked up when he saw Gu Yuan turn his head toward the computer: “What was that sound?”

Fang Jin suddenly remembered he was still logged into the private team system, and the account showed Gu Mingzong!

“You’re still working this late? What is it?”

Gu Yuan seemed to deliberately avoid looking at Fang Jin, who was sitting on the bed, and began walking toward the desk.

In that instant, Fang Jin stopped breathing. Just as he was about to instinctively speak, there was a heavy bang as Xiao Yao crashed into the bathroom wall!

Xiao Yao, having managed to crawl up, his senses hazy, was still trying to stagger toward Fang Jin, hugging the wall. Gu Yuan looked back, frowned, and stopped Fang Jin: “Don’t move!” He then quickly strode over, easily grabbed Xiao Yao like a small chicken, and dragged him into the bathroom.

The next second, Fang Jin sprang up, not even bothering with the towel. He quickly leaned over the computer, logged out of the system interface, cleared the usage history, and opened a random network page in the browser.

In the bathroom, Gu Yuan pressed Xiao Yao directly into the large jacuzzi tub, grabbed the showerhead, turned the ice-cold water to maximum, and blasted him. This utterly merciless action instantly made Xiao Yao shriek in suffocation, his legs flailing. Gu Yuan only moved the spray away when the boy was nearly rolling his eyes, then redirected the fierce stream straight at his lower body.

“Aaaahhh—” Xiao Yao screamed heartbreakingly. After a full ten seconds, he finally lay motionless like a salted fish, panting violently in the tub.

Gu Yuan threw the showerhead down with a bang, and looked down: “Problem solved?”

Xiao Yao’s face was pale blue, and he was shaking, barely daring to look at him.

“And you thought you could harbor designs on him,” Gu Yuan said coldly.

Xiao Yao frantically curled up deeper into the tub. Gu Yuan tossed the bath towel to him and walked out of the bathroom.

———

In the bedroom, Fang Jin had opened a few random files and company web pages to pretend he had been working, and then he heard Gu Yuan’s footsteps emerging.

He immediately tried to sit back down, but just then his hand slipped. The cursor touched a small pop-up ad in the bottom right corner of the webpage, instantly opening a new tab.

“Fang Jin, you…”

Gu Yuan looked up, his voice pausing with a peculiar inflection.

Fang Jin was bent over the desk, presenting a gracefully curving line from his shoulder to his back, to his narrow waist, and finally to his slightly raised posterior. Because his shirt and trousers were completely soaked, the fabric clung tightly to his body. If one were to look up, one would see the curve of his waist and posterior, and his two long, slender legs.

Gu Yuan’s gaze stopped there.

At the same moment, Fang Jin swiftly moved the cursor, trying to close the newly opened gaming interface. Yet, the “close” button on such ad games was often fake. In his panic, he failed to close it twice. He was about to press Ctrl+W to force the page shut, but the browser froze.

Meanwhile, Gu Yuan recovered from his momentary pause and walked closer, asking, “—What are you doing?”

Fang Jin desperately tried to force quit the browser, but it was too late.

Gu Yuan’s gaze fell onto the screen.

On the webpage, two scantily-clad CG beauties were provocatively posed in sheer fabrics, their “assets” ready to spill out; above them, a massive line of golden, sparkling text read: “Hurry and play! Three palaces, six courts, seventy-two concubines, various beauties await you!”

“…”

The sharp corner of Gu Yuan’s brow twitched. After a long silence, he tapped the screen with his knuckle and asked hoarsely:

“—Assistant Fang?”