Early the next morning, Xiao Tao clocked in at Qisheng Tower, arriving well before his shift began.

The building had a dedicated employee cafeteria that served breakfast daily. He headed back to his desk to drop off his things before heading downstairs for breakfast. Passing the president’s office, he happened to see Ning Zhu emerging from inside.

Ning Zhu had arrived an hour earlier than Xiao Tao, wrapping up yesterday’s tasks and stepping out to stretch his stiff limbs.

After greeting his boss, Xiao Tao noticed Ning Zhu looked remarkably well today and couldn’t help but take a second look.

He mused: Working late at the office the night before, yet arriving this early and still looking so refreshed—no wonder he’s the boss.

Ning Zhu stretched his legs, walked to the break room, and gazed out the window at the surrounding skyscrapers and distant mountains.

After a few minutes of letting his mind go blank, he returned to his office and opened the websites of two watch brands to browse. Cheng Li’s birthday was next Saturday, and in previous years, Ning Zhu had always personally selected the gift.

Cheng Li had a carefree personality, but he wasn’t one to make a big fuss about everything. Most of the time, he celebrated his birthday with family. However, this year he found staying home boring, and since his birthday happened to fall on a weekend, he invited Ning Zhu and Ji Chi, a few close friends, to throw a small birthday gathering.

Compared to celebrating his own birthday, it was more about finding an excuse to hang out with friends.

At this stage of life, when everyone’s busy juggling careers and personal commitments, opportunities for a few friends to simply hang out and have fun together were rare. That’s why Ning Zhu always gladly joined in.

He browsed websites for a while, adding a few items suitable for Cheng Li to his shortlist. Just as he closed the page, a friend request popped up on WeChat.

[Friend Request: Ddd]

Ddd… which department is that from…

Before he could examine it further, Secretary Xia knocked and entered, handing him the consolidated reports from several departments submitted the previous day. She then brought up another matter.

Ning Zhu’s alma mater, S University, was hosting its anniversary celebration next month and had sent him an invitation to return. Secretary Xia had received an email from the university, essentially inquiring whether Ning Zhu could attend as a representative of past graduates, potentially delivering a few minutes of remarks.

Without considering his schedule, Ning Zhu agreed.

His alma mater had played a pivotal role at critical junctures in his life; much of his professional network during his early entrepreneurial years had been built through the university’s platform.

Upon receiving his confirmation, Secretary Xia immediately prepared to reply to the email.

Ning Zhu then turned his attention back to the friend request, scrolling down to the notes section.

[Note: Second attempt.]

A faint smile touched his lips. After accepting the request, he changed the note to “Long Night.”

Hadn’t this guy asked him to search for his WeChat ID last night? Why was he sending a friend request today?

Still, it worked out perfectly. Replacing Ning Zhu’s SIM card would take time, and this unsolicited request saved him a lot of trouble.

Ning Zhu sent a spinning emoji. Looking up, he noticed Secretary Xia’s gaze fixed on his phone—still lingering.

Ning Zhu: “Is there something else?”

Secretary Xia hesitated, words on the tip of his tongue.

Unlike Xiao Tao, who spoke without reservation, Secretary Xia was cautious. In professional settings, he rarely brought up anything unrelated to work in front of Ning Zhu. So, he maintained that peculiar expression—wanting to speak but forced to hold back—shook his head, and turned to leave.

Ning Zhu felt both concerned that the man might be bottling things up and curious about what he’d wanted to say.

By evening, he got his answer.

After work, he ran into Ji Chi. They rode the elevator together. As Ning Zhu checked messages in the work group chat, Ji Chi glanced at him and immediately wore the same expression as Secretary Xia.

Unlike the overly formal Xia, Ji Chi was blunt and sharp-tongued: “Have you been eating phones this month?”

Ning Zhu: “…”

Ji Chi: “Two new models in less than a month? With that kind of spending power, you might as well encrust your phone in diamonds.”

Ning Zhu was particular about his daily expenses and occasionally flaunted his taste, but he wasn’t the type to constantly upgrade like a nouveau riche.

Ning Zhu: “.”

Not only do I replace two new phones a month, but I also have to reissue a bank card and a phone SIM card.

Doesn’t that prove even greater financial capability?

He caught the veiled criticism in the “diamond-encrusted” remark and frowned. “Got a problem with my sunglasses?”

Ji Chi replied coolly, “Not at all. Every single diamond on them was my idea.”

Ning Zhuo actually chuckled. “Those were a gift from Cheng Li.”

Ji Chi’s expression froze, his voice trailing off.

Ning Zhu patted his shoulder sympathetically. “Don’t worry. It’s his birthday next week. I’ll make sure to pass on every single one of your opinions.”

“…”

Ji Chi changed the subject. “What’s been going on with you lately?”

They’d known each other for years, and Ji Chi knew this guy wasn’t prone to such extravagance.

Ning Zhu sighed helplessly. “The old one broke. The replacement… An Jiang played with it last night. Let’s just say I’ve been a bit clumsy lately.”

“That’s some bad luck.”

Ning Zhu chuckled. “Quite the opposite. I’ve been incredibly lucky lately.”

He always wore a smile, though not every smile meant happiness. But Ji Chi could sense that today, Ning Zhu was genuinely in a great mood.

After leaving Qisheng, Ning Zhu got in his car to head home. On the way, he received a message from Dou Changxiao, following the spinning little man emoji.

[Changxiao:] When’s the next time?

Ning Zhu thought for a moment before replying: Probably in a month or two?

A period came back. Ning Zhu rubbed his nose, agreeing that the timeline felt too distant.

Naturally, he wanted to save this “medicine” for the next heat cycle. But the kid was already reluctant to comply with his blackmail—asking him to wait another two months was asking too much.

Besides, the evidence had long been destroyed. Ning Zhu felt guilty about the whole thing himself.

After a moment’s hesitation, he changed the date.

【Ning Firefly:】 How about next Saturday?

【Changxiao:】 I’m busy next Saturday.

Ning Zhu automatically interpreted this as work commitments and replied: No problem, you don’t need to come. I’ll come find you.

Cheng Li’s birthday fell in the evening. If Ning Zhu took his regular day off, he’d have ample time during the day.

At the nightclub where Dou Changxiao worked, the hostesses’ shifts ran from afternoon until dawn. Ning Zhuo figured Dou Changxiao would likely catch up on sleep during the day, so heading straight to the club before dusk should be perfect timing.

Might as well buy a few drinks and contribute to his tips. Ning Zhu thought it through meticulously. Lately, thanks to Dou Changxiao, he really been having a great time.

There was a moment of silence on the other end.

Just as Ning Zhu typed a few words in the chat box, a message came through.

【Changxiao:】Whatever.

Ning Zhu sent a winking emoji.

Dou Changxiao didn’t reply again, and the conversation ended there.

During rush hour, traffic was a bit congested. Bored in the backseat, Ning Zhu casually tapped Dou Changxiao’s profile icon to check his updates.

Discovering he hadn’t been blocked, Ning Zhu was slightly surprised.

Dou Changxiao had actually set a status background—this surprised Ning Zhu, who’d assumed his Moments feed would be all default backgrounds and cool vibes.

The background image showed a large dog sticking its tongue out at the camera. Though lacking scale references, it appeared massive. Ning Zhu recognized the breed—a Saint Bernard, he thought.

The Saint Bernard in the photo had a glossy coat, white and reddish-brown in color. A collar was fastened around its neck, with a bone-shaped dog tag dangling from the front.

Ning Zhu recognized it as the one hanging from Dou Changxiao’s rearview mirror. The slight curve at the corners of his lips slowly faded.

He didn’t let that pang of sadness linger too long. After a moment, he studied the photo again.

The dog tag bore the Saint Bernard’s name: Dou Dou.

…Dou Dou?

Ning Zhu: “…”

What a dog name.

In the dog world, it must be about as common as “Big Yellow.”

Dou Dou.

So the full name is “Dou Dou Dou”?

Ning Zhu turned his face away, his forehead pressed against the car window as he laughed uncontrollably. The last lingering trace of gloom in his heart was swept away by that name.

This kid is a genius at naming things.

He chuckled for a while before continuing to scroll down.

Dou Changxiao’s social feed was as quiet as the man himself, with updates coming in at a snail’s pace. The most recent post, months ago, was a cityscape night view snapped from an airplane.

Ning Zhu glanced at it and instinctively wanted to scroll further. Yet his finger paused mid-swipe, lingering on the screen.

He genuinely wanted to keep scrolling, but he sensed his curiosity about Dou Changxiao was unusually intense.

He couldn’t pinpoint why, but Ning Zhu instinctively felt this curiosity wasn’t good for him.

He swiped back to the top, took one last look at Dou Dou, then exited the app.

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye, yet Ning Zhu nearly forgot the arrangement he’d made with Dou Changxiao.

Dou Changxiao hadn’t messaged him during this time, and the agreed-upon date two weeks prior had been rather vague, never firmly confirmed. Once Ning Zhu got busy, anything not written in his schedule gradually slipped his mind.

It wasn’t until Saturday afternoon, when he tossed Cheng Li’s gift into his car, that the matter suddenly came back to him.

Fortunately, there was still time. He could make it to the store if he left immediately.

Since he was meeting Dou Changxiao, he didn’t call Old Zhao in for overtime and drove himself.

The schedule was tight, so Ning Zhu didn’t have time to notify Dou Changxiao beforehand. He drove straight to the bar and nightclub.

The nightclub manager was busy preparing for the evening when he spotted Ning Zhu. Surprised, he put on a professional smile and came over to greet him.

It had been a while since Ning Zhu had come to drink with anyone. The manager assumed the previous incident with Brother Lei had left him displeased, and that he’d been feeling down for a while over losing such a big-spending client.

The sun was setting, but the sky remained bright. It wasn’t yet the club’s operating hours. Wondering why Ning Zhu had arrived so early, the manager ushered him inside: “Mr. Ning, are you here alone today? We open in half an hour—would you like to wait in the booth area?”

Ning Zhu smiled. “No need.”

The manager froze. “Then you…”

Ning Zhu kept one hand in his pocket, lingering at the doorway without stepping inside. “I’m here for Changxiao. Has he started his shift?”