His Honey Chapter 5

Chapter 5

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Early in the morning, the sky was overcast.

The neon lights of the skyscrapers were still waving, but the clouds were weighing down with a murderous aura. The image was rather like a post-apocalyptic carnival, cyberpunk-like.

Xiao Yichi chewed on a cigarette and propped his hands on the edge of the balcony, emptying his consciousness.

At this moment, a message came in on his cell phone.

He picked it up and read it, confirming the sender a few times.

The message from Yu Zhinian was as follows: Do you have time this morning? There is something to talk about regarding the chef.

"What should I do if I'm not in the right state of mind to meet up with someone who asked to meet me? Urgent, waiting online." Xiao Yichi resorted to an internet meme to express his feelings after reading the message.

But since it involved the chef, Xiao Yichi would not ignore it. He wrote back, "Specific time and place?"

After clicking send, Xiao Yichi looked at the time, six thirty in the morning.

It seems like the job of a lawyer isn't easy either.

Working hours.

The location of their appointment was the cafe where they met for the first time.

Yu Zhinian arrived first. He was dressed in a well-tailored charcoal grey pinstripe suit and a burgundy silk tie. The female waitress quietly stared at him for a long time at the order counter.

Xiao Yichi arrived on cue. He thought about cleaning up his appearance before he left the house but later gave up, if he was too intentional, it would be easy for the other to misunderstand him, so he might as well keep his true colours. Besides, he didn't usually leave the house unkempt, so it was fine to go out naturally.

He pushed the door in and saw the only customer sitting there, holding a tablet in his hand.

What a truly perfect face. The demeanour was also dignified, he was like a painting no matter how you looked at him.

Approaching, Xiao Yichi's gaze fell on the seam between the shoulder and arm of the other man's suit jacket. That is the standard test of whether a suit fits well or not. The alignment was precise, not too loose, not too tight, there was no doubt that it was custom-made.

Yu Zhinian raised his head, and as soon as those deep eyes saw the light, a sense of surprise came over him. When he was expressionless, he appeared to be cold, mean and ascetic, so obviously there should be a matching cool temperament, but there was a sense of bloodthirsty aggression in him.

Da Shan went to his customer base to collect information specifically for Xiao Yichi. Yu Zhinian is a "gay attraction magnet", and "even being bullied by him will feel natural."

Xiao Yichi admitted that this was not entirely unreasonable.

"Morning." He sat down and said hello.

Yu Zhinian looked at the two dark circles under his eyes and then looked at the huge Gudetama on his t-shirt, wordlessly averting his eyes, "What would you like to drink? I'll go order."

Mutually knowing each other's nasty mouths, politeness was not necessary.

"I don't need it." As he spoke, Xiao Yichi's head began to throb.

"Let's get straight to the point then." Yu Zhinian put away the tablet and took out a black card.

"This is what Mr. Ye asked me to pass on to you, any expenses you incur accompanying the chef are to be charged here."

Xiao Yichi smiled but did not accept it, "Thank Mr. Ye for me, the chef is my friend, there is no need for a black card when you invite a friend out to have fun. I appreciate his feelings, the rest is not necessary."

Yu Zhinian expected that the other party would not accept it and simply took back the card, "Okay, I'll pass it on for you."

"Then is there anything else?"

"With regards to the chef, we hope that he won't ask to leave again for at least half a year, and will work according to the requirements of his contract. It's important to Mr. Ye."

"If that's all you're asking for, I'll do my best, after all, this is his job too. But the chef's personality doesn't lend itself to conspiracy, if you guys are planning to use him for something else, you'd better choose another option." Xiao Yichi stated his words up front in no uncertain terms.

"That's not something you or I are in a position to decide. I will truthfully convey your thoughts." Yu Zhinian responded with a skillful deflection.

Xiao Yichi got the urge to ask Yu Zhinian how much his lawyer's fee was, but he had no choice but to go back and take some medication as he had a terrible headache.

"Alright, then we'll call it a day?" Xiao Yichi got up, but his eyes suddenly went black, and he made a commotion as he violently reached out and propped himself up on the table.

"What's wrong with you?" Yu Zhinian stood up and took a step forward to ask.

Xiao Yichi waved his hand, "It's nothing, just low blood sugar."

He waited for his vision to clear and then looked at Yu Zhinian, "Sorry, it's okay."

"Go see the doctor." Yu Zhinian went back to his seat to retrieve his bag.

"Mhmm." The two walked out of the cafe one after the other.

Xiao Yichi walked in front. The moment he exited the doorway, it was as if a vampire who couldn't meet the light was stabbed by the light. His whole body suddenly spun around, and if he didn't pay attention to the two steps under his feet, he would fall down.

"Be careful!"

These were the two words Xiao Yichi heard before his consciousness disappeared.

Outside the ward of the private hospital.

Yu Zhinian called Nan Jing to postpone his next work schedule.

Ending the call, he pushed through the door and entered the room, where Xiao Yichi, who had just been sleeping peacefully, had his brows furrowed and his body turned unnaturally, like he was having a nightmare.

Seeing this, Yu Zhinian stepped forward and patted his cheek, "Xiao Yichi, wake up." At the same time, he pressed the pager.

"Xiao Yichi!" As the words landed, Xiao Yichi's eyes snapped open. His gaze was lax and he was gasping for air, like a person on the verge of drowning.

The doctor came and checked Xiao Yichi's data, and asked, "Mr. Xiao, how are you feeling right now?"

Xiao Yichi gradually regained consciousness. He looked at the doctor, and then looked at Yu Zhinian behind the doctor, "... Is this a hospital?"

"Yes." The doctor was writing something on the medical record, "Did you just have a nightmare?"

Xiao Yichi sat up, only to realise that he had a needle inserted in his hand. "... Yes."

"How long has this been going on?"

"Almost a month."

"Do you have an idea of what is causing the nightmares?"

Yu Zhinian kept listening from the side.

Xiao Yichi hesitated and confessed, "I have PTSD."

PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, was a condition that appeared in all areas of the body and mind after suffering great psychological trauma.

"May I ask when it was diagnosed?"

"Three years ago. I was seeing a psychiatrist, but it was off and on because I was busy with work, and then things got better, so I stopped seeing them... It came back again when I returned to China."

The doctor wrote briskly, "According to the preliminary diagnosis, you need to receive psychological treatment again, we can provide you with a referral."

"I will arrange this, and will contact you again if needed." Yu Zhinian interjected at the right time.

The doctor nodded, confirmed the IV and left.

Only two people were left in the ward.

Xiao Yichi looked towards Yu Zhinian and opened his mouth to thank him, "Thank you for sending me to the hospital." He looked around the ward, "It's... quite expensive here, right?"

"There's no need to worry, this is the Ye family's property, and none of the money spent is yours or mine."

Xiao Yichi ungraciously breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

"I feel much better now, can I go?"

"It's okay to go, but what will you do after that?"

Xiao Yichi shrugged, "I'll figure that out later." He skilfully operated the IV, pulling the needle out and pressing the hemostatic patch tightly.

Yu Zhinian watched his movements and suggested, "I know a psychiatrist, she's very professional, perhaps she can help."

Xiao Yichi smiled, "To get such a high rating from you, it seems that she is a very impressive doctor. But it's no..." He got out of bed, and the word "use" was still brewing in his mouth when, unexpectedly, his feet went soft. Yu Zhinian was quick on his feet and reached out to help him.

"If you're a weak chicken, don't play cool and refuse."

Xiao Yichi suddenly felt that he was stabbed with several large knives. Sitting in the Mercedes Benz, Xiao Yichi noticed that the cup holder in the centre armrest held a high-end brand of takeaway coffee, a brand that was famous for its hand-ground coffee.

Yu Zhinian fastened his seatbelt, "I'll contact you when I make an appointment, Ye Zhaolin will be responsible for the expenses."

Xiao Yichi also fastened his seatbelt, "That's not very good, right? It always feels like I'm taking advantage."

"I have discretion, just use it." Yu Zhinian put on his sunglasses and started the car.

With these words, Xiao Yichi gave him a look, feeling damn secure.

After the car had driven a distance, Xiao Yichi suddenly thought, "That's not right." He looked at Yu Zhinian, "Shouldn't you ask me when I'm free before making an appointment with the doctor?"

Yu Zhinian glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. What kind of nonsense is someone who is free every day saying. "... Then when are you free?"

Xiao Yichi felt self-conscious of being despised. Indeed, he was very idle, but what was with the other party's attitude that seemed to see right through him?

Rebelliousness was aroused. The little devil awakened.

Xiao Yichi held back, "Alright, I'll accommodate the doctor's time."

Yu Zhinian sent Xiao Yichi to the entrance of the neighbourhood. Xiao Yichi got out of the car, leaned over to look into the open window and smiled, "Lawyer Yu, I forgot to say, the tomato sauce you made with your own hands tastes really good."

Yu Zhinian jerked his head to look at Xiao Yichi. The mask of the high and mighty elite lawyer cracked with a click.

"Bye bye!" Xiao Yichi waved his hand, turned around and strode inside.

"Hey!"

At this moment, the car behind him sounded its horn, reminding Yu Zhinian to get out of the way and quickly drive away.

"Tsk." Yu Zhinian tensed his face and stepped on the accelerator.

Xiao Yichi didn't know what to do, and when he got home, he took out the half-eaten tomato sauce from the fridge and took a picture of it, sending it to Yu Zhinian – "Thank you, Lawyer Yu! I have this little bit left to eat, who allowed me to be so free?" With a picture of a sunny smiley face.

When he saw the message, Yu Zhinian had just come out of the elevator and was preparing to enter the office. If it wasn't for the fact that everyone coming and going was a colleague, Yu Zhinian really would have cursed out loud.

Shit!

When Yu Zhinian walked into the office, he realised that Xiao Yichi must have misunderstood – misunderstood that he had once again characterised him without knowing anything about it, believing that he had nothing to do.

The truth was that Yu Zhinian had sent someone to spy on him and learnt that he played with the cats every day – The question was, could this be told? Isn't it tantamount to digging his own grave?

In the end, it was Yu Zhinian who lost.

Lawyer Yu looked up at the ceiling speechlessly and swallowed a mouthful of blood back into his stomach.

After a moment's rest, Yu Zhinian's emotions recovered, and he sent a text message to Auntie Pan asking her to have dinner with him in the evening.

Auntie Pan seemed very happy today and specially made a few extra dishes.

Yu Zhinian gave her a hand and tried to ask, "Aunt Pan... do you still have enough tomato sauce at home?"

"Oh! I sent two cans to Auntie Mai and Xiao Xiao, so there's probably only one can left. What's wrong? Do you want to eat it today?" Auntie Pan was very frank.

"No, I'm just asking." Yu Zhinian weighed his words, intending to politely express to his aunt the non-necessity of her getting too close to Xiao Yichi.

Auntie Pan, however, looked towards him with joy between her brows, "Zhinian, do you want to give Xiao Xiao some more? Then give him the rest of the can."

"Huh?" Yu Zhinian was puzzled.

"Auntie Mai saw Xiao Xiao get out of a Mercedes Benz today. She filmed it and sent it to me to look at, and it was your car. You must have talked about tomato sauce, right? If he likes it, then let him have more!" Auntie Pan laughed happily.

Aunties, they really are pervasive intelligence masters.

"He and I..."

"I know, I know! You guys are just ordinary friends interacting with each other, I understand!" Auntie Pan's smile didn't change, "The strawberry jam you made last year tasted great too, if the orchard sends strawberries this year, let's make some more and give Xiao Xiao a taste too."

"..." Yu Zhinian thought, why did he feel like he was at the bottom of the food chain?

Xiao Yichi ate the last bite of tomato sauce like a snack, wasn't he repaying kindness with hatred? Yu Zhinian had introduced him to a psychiatrist, and he irritated him with the tomato sauce.

He bet Yu Zhinian didn't know about Auntie Pan sending them that tomato sauce.

But he kinda liked jumping around in Yu Zhinian's minefield over and over again – he just wanted to see the defeated look on his face as he was hateful but unable to fuck him over.

Xiao Yichi washed the jar and set it out to dry.

At first he thought it was an ordinary glass jar, then he felt that the feeling was not quite right. Once he checked the seal at the bottom, he realised that it was a royal imperial brand. Even the jar containing tomato sauce was so elaborate, one could imagine how this person led an exquisite life.

Xiao Yichi shook his head with a smile and returned to the living room.

The living room was piled with all kinds of materials, piles and piles of them, one had to tiptoe around them and bounce around. Xiao Yichi returned to the centre where the materials surrounded him, sat down, and turned on his computer on the low table.

Yu Zhinian's implication that he had nothing to do indeed stung him a little.

Men, without work, truly couldn't do it.

He had been in a state of recuperation since he returned to China, he hadn't checked his email and his cell phone number had changed. Today he logged on to his email account and found more than a hundred unread emails.

Xiao Yichi scrolled down and browsed through them, and there were contacts for book publishing, greetings, and work talk – At a glance, he was quite popular.

While he was rejoicing, he glanced at the last and earliest email sent, which was from: Qiu Lanshi.

Xiao Yichi's hand on the mouse froze. When he clicked on it, he saw that the subject line was the content of the message: Back in China?

Xiao Yichi rubbed the back of his neck and decided to ignore it.

In the evening, Yu Zhinian sent a message with a dry tone, directly throwing out the time booked with the psychiatrist, "Wait at the entrance of the neighbourhood, I'll show you the way the first time."

Xiao Yichi came out of the shower, his hair was still dripping water, and after reading it, he replied in a well-behaved manner, "Okay, thank you Lawyer Yu!", with a picture of a shy smile.

Yu Zhinian did not reply again.

At that time, assistant Nan Jing happened to deliver his documents. Yu Zhinian put down his cell phone and asked him a question, "You said... that Xiao Yichi is your niche idol before, why?"

Nan Jing blinked, temporarily pulling himself out of his work state, and pushed his glasses, "His writing is very good. You can see passion in coldness, and roses growing from the smoke."

Yu Zhinian hummed, "Alright."

"Okay." Nan Jing left the office.

Yu Zhinian opened the folder that Nan Jing had sent him previously, and there was a dense column of documents.

It was daunting. Yu Zhinian directly clicked close.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: December 23, 2023