The rainy July plunged the entire city into dampness. Walking on the street, a downpour could start for no reason, impossible to avoid—an unpredictability that even the meteorological station couldn't grasp.

The clubhouse's locker room was a little too quiet, the only sound being the hum of the air conditioner. At this time, the attendants were all busy outside, but on a long bench sat a tall and slender man. Black clothes, pale skin—like a silent and deathly still black-and-white painting.

He stared down at the floor, motionless like a lifeless stone statue. The bangs on his forehead quietly slipped down, covering his slightly upturned eyes. The profile of his face was steeped in light and shadow, only his lips an extreme red, inexplicably revealing a ghoulishly eerie beauty.

Click—

The closed door was suddenly pushed open. A middle-aged man who looked like a supervisor, dressed in a shirt and trousers, walked in. The lively music from outside surged in through the crack in the door like a tide, nearly drowning out his voice:

"Chen Shu, hurry up. You're dawdling just to change your clothes. Private room 608. If you can't make it, I'm sending someone else!"

He had only come in to hurry him along and give a notice, not needing any reply. After speaking, he left in a rush. The door closed, and the locker room fell back into silence.

The man sitting on the long bench finally moved at his words. He slowly raised his head to look at the full-length mirror embedded in the opposite wall, which reflected a youthful and familiar face—

Inky black bangs, slender and slightly upturned eyes. Due to his long-term irregular schedule, the skin under his eyes had a faint shadowy hue, making his features look deep and cold. However, the corners of his lips were naturally curved up, adding a touch of bewitching kindness.

This was the twenty-year-old Chen Shu,

The twenty-year-old, still high-spirited Chen Shu.

He stood up and slowly approached the mirror. His youthful face carried the aristocratic air and decadence nurtured by money and desire from his past life, a stark contrast to the desolate, ashen face he had when he jumped into the river in the dead of night.

How could this be? Had he been reborn?

After realizing this, Chen Shu couldn't stop himself from reaching out and gripping the edge of the mirror. His bloodshot eyes stared deadly at the familiar face inside, terrified this was a dream. However, the pain of his fingertips digging into his palm clearly reminded him that all of this was real.

"How is it? Doesn't it feel great to be reborn?"

The voice was full of temptation, suddenly exploding from the shadows and making one's scalp tingle.

Chen Shu froze and abruptly looked up. A formless black shadow had slowly materialized in the air. After a series of twists and transformations, it finally became a bizarre and bewitching snake.

This Black Snake coiled up Chen Shu's cold, pale arm and gently rested its head on his right shoulder. It hissed, flicking its tongue, its cold scales glistening like obsidian under the light:

"In your past life, you were just a little less lucky than them. Don't you want a chance to turn the tables?"

Chen Shu's breath caught for a moment. "Who are you?"

He had always been bold. He felt no fear or panic toward this suddenly appearing Black Snake. In fact, after staring at it for a while, he felt a sense of being drawn to his own kind.

The Black Snake slowly slithered its body around to Chen Shu's other shoulder. Its red eyes looked exceptionally eerie under the light, like two crimson jewels. "That's not important. What's important is that I can give you a chance to be reborn."

"In this life, the people you hate will be utterly defeated. Everything you missed will be back in your grasp, and what you could never obtain will be yours for the taking..."

It painted a beautiful and dreamlike future, but Chen Shu remained unmoved. His handsome face looked cold and mocking under the light, as if he had long since seen the price tag marked by fate. "Why are you helping me? And what are the conditions?"

No one knew better than him that great temptations were often accompanied by huge risks.

The Black Snake let out a low laugh. It liked this Host's intelligence. It whispered a sentence into Chen Shu's ear, its gentle tone hiding the sharpest malice in the world: "Get close to Zhuang Yihan, make him fall in love with you, and then..."

It paused deliberately, drawing out its tone, and slowly uttered two words: "Dump him~"

The despair and pain produced after being abandoned by a loved one was the most delicious delicacy in the world. The Black Snake seemed to have already foreseen that it could devour countless such pains in the future, and it joyfully flicked the tip of its tail.

Chen Shu was stunned. "You said you want me to dump who?"

The Black Snake asked back meaningfully: "You hate him yet you love him deeply. You betrayed him yet you could never have him. Who do you think he is?"

"..."

The rain outside was getting heavier. Through the window, the sound was noisy and indistinct. One could only see meandering streams of water sliding down the glass, blurring the distant neon-lit skyscrapers. The wind rustled, as if it wanted to blow the entire world upside down.

Bang!

The locker room door was kicked open again. This time it wasn't the supervisor, but a fashionably dressed young man. Without a word after entering, he grabbed Chen Shu and started dragging him out, urging, "Hey, how can you be so slow on your first day? And after I went to so much trouble to get you this job. Let me tell you, there's a big client in the VIP room today. You'd better perform well later. If you get picked, you'll earn at least this much in one night!"

The enthusiastic man in front of him was twenty at most, with trendy chestnut-colored hair, a black tank top, a studded denim jacket, and many messy decorative rings on his hands. It was inevitably a bit flashy, but because he was young and handsome, it didn't look tacky. Instead, it gave him a flamboyant energy. Mingling in the lights and music of the clubhouse, he was no different from the men and women in their eccentric outfits.

Seeing the newcomer, Chen Shu was dazed for a moment. "Duan Chengcai?"

There were six people in their dorm room. Four of them were locals; only Chen Shu and Duan Chengcai came from the countryside, so their relationship was closer than with the others.

Back in school, Chen Shu had been tight on money, often not knowing where his next meal would come from. Duan Chengcai, however, dressed flamboyantly every day and spent money lavishly. It wasn't until one night after evening study that Chen Shu accidentally saw a young master in a luxury car dropping Duan Chengcai off at the dorm. Only then did he learn that the other was working as a male model in a high-end clubhouse. Later, he too was dragged into this world of hedonism.

But in his past life, Duan Chengcai's end wasn't a good one. He heard that he had developed real feelings for a rich young master, but the other was just playing around and looked down on a male model who worked as a host. In the end, Duan Chengcai couldn't get over it and attempted suicide. He slit his wrists, splattering blood all over the dorm room. He was carried onto an ambulance half-dead, surrounded by onlooking students taking pictures and enjoying the spectacle.

Chen Shu no longer remembered the scene that day. He only remembered that the sky was very dark, with no moon. A few roommates frantically carried him downstairs as blood gushed out as if it were free. The corridor was covered in mottled bloodstains, a shocking sight.

Later, when Chen Shu went to visit him in the hospital, Duan Chengcai was lying on the bed, his face pale, completely soulless. He repeatedly murmured one sentence: "Chen Shu... I really regret it... I really regret it..."

Regret? Regret what?

Regret starting down this path of no return? Regret dragging Chen Shu down with him? Regret not studying hard, being dazzled by this hedonistic city? Or regret being too stupid to understand the ways of the world, thinking a high and mighty young master would actually fall for a male host?

Perhaps all of it, or perhaps none of it...

And so, Chen Shu suddenly realized that fate had long ago given him a sign about his and Zhuang Yihan's ending. It was just that his obsession had blinded him back then, and he always thought he could fight against destiny.

In that brief moment of distraction, Chen Shu had been dragged into the clubhouse's private room by Duan Chengcai. Just before entering, the other suddenly remembered something and warned in a low voice, "Remember, you're not allowed to call me Duan Chengcai outside. It's so hick. Here, you have to call me Kevin, Kevin~ Got it!"

Duan Chengcai's morals were fuzzy, but he wasn't a bad person. Because he'd gone to find Chen Shu, he was a little late entering. Inside, a line of male models was already standing there. A quick glance revealed they were all handsome young men—Korean-style pretty boys, muscular hunks—a complete collection of every type.

A large portion of these men were students working part-time. Two were even from the art academy. They didn't need much dressing up; their vibrant youth was their best asset.

Duan Chengcai, relying on his thick skin, forcefully squeezed into the middle of the line. The row, which was originally meant for eight people, now had nine. The already crowded space became even more cramped. A muscular hunk happened to be next to him. He shot him a vicious glare, but with clients present, he could only curse under his breath, "Do you have no fucking shame? Go line up at the back!"

Duan Chengcai pretended not to hear and nonchalantly straightened his clothes. What a joke. What if the client couldn't see him later if he stood at the back? Only an idiot would stand at the back!

Duan Chengcai was completely unaware that Chen Shu had at some point slipped from his grasp and was now standing alone in a corner at the very back. With his hands in his pockets, he leaned silently against the wall, his figure shrouded by the dim ambient lighting. Without looking closely, one wouldn't even notice his presence.

Opposite them was a set of curved floor-to-ceiling windows. Standing here, one could overlook the central axis of the entire city. Skyscrapers dotted the landscape, their neon lights more dazzling than the stars. Down below, pedestrians scrambled for cover from the rain on the streets, while in the high-rises, people lived a life of debauchery.

In front of the windows was a curved black leather sofa, on which sat about seven or eight young men and women. Only a few of them had companions; the rest were single, which was likely why they were ordering male models—

Not necessarily for the night, maybe just to join in on games and have fun. But most of the people who could sit in this private room were either rich or noble. Even just accompanying them for a few drinks could earn a lot, so those male models were all doing their best to perform, their flirtatious glances flying all over the place.

In the very center of the sofa sat a young master with a cigarette dangling from his lips. He looked devil-may-care, but his aura was formidable. His critical gaze swept over the group of male models. He frowned, then casually picked a few people:

"Number 2, 3, 5, 7, and 8. The rest of you can go."

The muscular hunk left with regret. Kevin successfully survived until the end.

The group of male models who had been filtered out had no choice but to lower their heads to hide their disappointed and jealous expressions. They turned to leave. As he passed the smug Duan Chengcai, the muscular hunk—whether intentionally or not—suddenly gave him a hard, covert shove with his shoulder. Duan Chengcai lost his footing and immediately cried out as he fell to the ground. His hands flailed wildly, knocking over the male models beside him like a row of dominoes. Numbers 2, 3, 5, and 7 all went tumbling.

The young masters obviously hadn't expected this. They were all stunned for a moment. Finally, someone reacted first, bursting into laughter. Like it was contagious, one by one they all started laughing uncontrollably.

The male models scrambled up from the floor, their faces flushed, and shot Duan Chengcai a vicious glare. Duan Chengcai, meanwhile, grimaced and rubbed his backside, looking around for the muscular guy who had bumped him. But the other had long since slipped away, not even a shadow to be seen.

The formidable young master sitting in the center was the only one not laughing. He flicked his cigarette ash, then suddenly lifted his chin slightly in Duan Chengcai's direction and asked out of the blue:

"Come here. What's your number?"

Duan Chengcai's eyes lit up. He immediately scurried over. "Second Young Master Zhuang, I'm number eight. You can just call me Kevin~"

But Zhuang Yifan said impatiently, "I wasn't talking to you."

He pushed away Duan Chengcai's approaching face. The flickering ember of his cigarette pointed through the air, aimed right at Chen Shu, who was preparing to leave with the other models. His voice was neither loud nor soft, just enough for everyone to hear:

"The one in black, you, come here."

The air suddenly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop. In an instant, countless eyes followed the direction of his gesture. It was only then that everyone discovered a "hidden gem" mixed in with the group of models. It was one thing when Chen Shu wasn't standing with the group earlier, but now, mixed in the crowd, he stood out like a crane among chickens. He was tall and straight, elegant and sharp like a green bamboo. Even without seeing his face, anyone with a sharp eye could tell from his back alone that he was an exceptional handsome man.

When Chen Shu heard Zhuang Yifan's voice, his heart couldn't help but clench violently for a moment. He felt as if he had returned to that cold, desperate night by the river, being thrown in and pulled out again and again by that person. The feeling of suffocation followed him like a shadow, so cold that even his bones trembled.

Seeing him remain still, Zhuang Yifan frowned and clicked his tongue, seeming a bit impatient. "I told you to turn around, didn't you hear me?"

"..."

Chen Shu could only stop and slowly turn to face Zhuang Yifan. When his face was revealed in the light, the surroundings fell silent for a moment.

The male models in a high-end clubhouse were, without exception, very young. Most of them were even male university students who had just turned twenty, their faces youthful and tender. However, along with youth inevitably came the shallowness and restlessness of inexperience. They were covered in the scent of powder and perfume, like shallow puddles under the sun that one could see through at a glance, leaving no desire to explore further.

Chen Shu was also young, but he had lived an extra lifetime. In his past life, he had seen the glamour of high society by Zhuang Yihan's side, built a career, and even caused quite a stir in the business world with a flick of his wrist. His aura had decades more maturity than others. The contradictory feeling of youth clashing with maturity was particularly eye-catching.

More serene than a cold pond, more inscrutable than the night.

The hard farm work of his impoverished childhood had given him a lean and strong physique. He wasn't overly muscular, nor was he scrawny like the pale university students next to him. Coupled with his heaven-blessed face, he was a top-tier specimen from head to toe. Many people in the room had their eyes light up for a moment.

Colorful candies were sweet, but a glass of rich, mellow red wine held a similarly fatal allure for them. Compared to Chen Shu, those young boys seemed somewhat lacking.

"Tsk, Second Young Master Zhuang, you've got a sharp eye. We almost missed him just now."

Someone nearby offered a compliment, a small bit of flattery, which made Zhuang Yifan's eyes crinkle with smugness. He also thought this male model was excellent. He hadn't expected the clubhouse to have such an outstanding specimen—he had the looks, the body, and the aura. He was good enough to debut as a star.

Everyone thought Zhuang Yifan would keep him for himself, as he was known for not being picky. However, he extinguished his cigarette in a wine glass, lifted his chin slightly, and unexpectedly gestured toward the lounge area in the suite to his left:

"Not bad looking. You can stay too. My friend is drunk inside. Take him to a hotel to rest later. Take good care of him."

Whoa—

His words were like a stone thrown into water, instantly causing ripples. Everyone exchanged glances, seeing the astonishment in each other's eyes.

For no other reason than that the person lying in the inner suite was none other than the Zhuang Family's eldest young master, Zhuang Yihan.