His desire

"The new version of the official website is scheduled to be launched next Monday. Please give us your feedback." Luffy turned sideways, sat on the edge of the table with one leg on the ground, pushed his laptop aside, and clicked refresh.

Zhuang Yu'an saw a meadow painted with hazy colored pencils, its pale green leaves swaying in the breeze beneath a blue sky. A milky white kitten, bathed in a pale golden glow, rolled into the painting, glancing up and down in bewilderment. The entire scene seemed shrouded in mist, imbued with a poetic, dreamlike quality, a scene straight out of most people's sweet dreams.

Oh, and there's background music. It's probably a little tune played on a ukulele, casual and lazy, occasionally lively, like a carefree kid playing it casually while sitting in the sun.

"Slide the touchpad." Luffy prompted.

Zhuang Yu'an stretched out his hand and swept two fingers downward. A pale pink butterfly flew over. The kitten's blue eyes fixed on it, then it spread its legs and ran after it. Suddenly, the kitten bumped into a large flower stalk and fell limply to the grass. With an exclamation point, a text appeared in the air, explaining the origins of "Pet Planet."

By the time Zhuang Yu'an finished reading all the content carefully and stopped at a "Memory Fragments" page that brought together all the content sections, several minutes had passed unknowingly.

"How is it?" Luffy looked at him expectantly with light in his eyes.

Zhuang Yu'an knew who created this piece. He thought for a moment and gave it an objective assessment: "It's refreshing and impressive. However, from the perspective of information transmission, it seems inefficient."

Luffy snapped his fingers: "As expected of you, you have grasped the key points perfectly!"

He explained with a smile, "In this impetuous age of information explosion, this anti-efficiency approach precisely reflects the advocacy of love and companionship. Nothing better demonstrates the existence of love than wasting time on someone. This is true between people and between people and pets. Only by slowing down can we feel love."

Zhuang Yu'an smiled faintly: "So what you mean is that the willingness to waste time watching this incredibly slow official website shows that users and investors love us."

Luffy choked on his words and paused for a moment before saying, "Don't you think this gives people a healing feeling? The pace of work and life is already fast enough. Even leisure and entertainment are like being pointed at a gun, racing against time. Occasionally, we need to slow down and relax."

Zhuang Yu'an thought for a moment and said cautiously, "I'm not against your ideas, I just have reservations. But the final decision is yours, you have the final say."

Luffy's expression relaxed a little. He dragged the laptop back, closed the screen, and said with a smile: "OK, then it will be online next Monday."

"Okay." Zhuang Yu'an picked up a stack of documents and saw Luffy still sitting at the desk. He looked up and asked, "Is there anything else?"

"Nothing." Luffy's lips curled up, his face high and bright. "I just couldn't help but praise the project manager. She came up with the idea, created the core visuals, and even wrote and played the background music... Hey, the brand department is really full of hidden talents!"

The fingers gripping the folder tightened unconsciously. Zhuang Yu'an lowered his eyes and said calmly, "Well, the main thing is that you know how to recruit and employ people."

"You've changed. You've become good at chatting!" Luffy knocked on the table happily. "Just for that, I have to treat you to a meal! You decide the time."

"Then you owe me two meals." Zhuang Yu'an said expressionlessly.

Luffy was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Remember this, say hello to Boss Zhou for me!" After that, he grabbed the computer and left leisurely.

Behind him, Zhuang Yu'an looked lost. After a moment, a wry smile played on his face.

At 4 p.m., he left the office for the airport. He had a pet industry forum in Shanghai the next day where he was going to give a speech. He also had several dinner engagements over the weekend, so he wouldn't be back in Beijing until Sunday evening.

Originally, CMO Luffy was supposed to attend the event to share the company's understanding of consumer trends and brand building strategies. The weekend dinners were mostly filled with Luffy's acquaintances. But yesterday, this guy suddenly excused himself, claiming a family elder's birthday was coming up, and insisted on him taking over. Zhuang Yu'an had known him for nearly ten years, and he knew from his expression that something was fishy.

In the car, he called his aunt and asked her to come over twice a day, morning and evening, on Saturdays and Sundays to take care of the cats and dogs. His aunt casually asked, "Is Jinghao going out too?" He replied, "Yes, I'm going out to play and will be back on Sunday."

His sister had reported last night that she had plans with friends to visit Tianjin on Saturday and Sunday, and had even shown him some crosstalk performance tickets. He suspected Zuo Xiao was among those "friends." If she was there, then Luffy was likely involved, and perhaps Chen Liqing as well. As for whether there were others in her "harem," he had no idea.

At a certain moment, a trace of unwillingness emerged in Zhuang Yu'an's heart, which he suppressed but then rose again.

As he saw it, the world was full of willful people. Some, like his sister, were simple-minded and thoughtless, often acting on their own whims. Some, like him, were selfish, disregarding the feelings and interests of others, focusing solely on their own interests. Still others, like Luffy and Zuo Xiao, completely disregarded propriety and morality under the banner of freedom. Everyone could be willful, except him.

As long as he could remember, he had no right to be willful.

He fell and hurt his knee outside, and his mother told him not to cry. He had to stop crying within a few seconds, otherwise she would abandon him and leave;

He was awakened by nightmares in the middle of the night and cried to find his mother, but every time he found the door locked. Later, he learned to turn on the lights and call Ultraman to drive away the monsters in his dreams.

When he was four years old, his mother forced him to learn piano. She supervised him and would beat or starve him if he practiced for even a minute less.

It was rare for him to see his father at home on weekends. He would beg his father to take him out to play, but his father would say, "Dad is tired and wants to take a rest."

In this way, he learned to be a person who did not cause trouble to others. After his sister was born, he gradually learned how to take care of his family and found the meaning of his existence in it.

His sister became his number one priority in life, with the only exception being in his freshman year of high school. That day, his deskmate graciously invited him to a birthday party that evening, leaving him alone. On the way home, he received a call that his sister had broken her leg. That was when he truly understood: He might have the ability to choose to be willful, but he couldn't afford the price of that.

He couldn't treat the world like his sister, carefree and carefree, like a playground; nor could he indulge in a single girl like Luffy. Furthermore, the first girl he'd ever fallen for was someone else's girlfriend. That lucky man was his best friend and business comrade... Even if he was headstrong enough, he couldn't be so shameless as to covet someone else's partner. He could only hide within Luffy's body in the shadows of his imagination and dreams, venting the uncontrollable desires deep within him—those ugly, shameless, and disgusting desires.

Zhuang Yu'an clenched his fists. He looked into his heart, as if gazing into a bottomless, cold pond. He knew exactly what kind of monster lurked beneath the seemingly calm surface.

In the deep dusk, the plane left the runway and soared into the sky.

After the cabin stabilized, a clear female voice came to my ears: "Are you going to Shanghai on a business trip?"

Zhuang Yu'an turned his head and saw a clean face. The girl had a pair of beautiful mountain-like eyebrows, dark and bright eyes, and her black hair was tied into an exquisite bun at the back of her head.

The corners of his mouth curved slightly: "Yes."

"Let me guess..." She smiled, "Are you in the pet industry?"

Zhuang Yu'an was slightly startled, his eyes showing some doubt and a hint of vigilance. The girl smiled and said, "I'm in the same industry. I've read your report."

The two naturally fell into conversation. The girl's name was Yan Qing, and her family owned a pet hospital. Zhuang Yu'an knew the company; it had hundreds of chain stores in first- and second-tier cities. Yan Qing had worked for the company since graduating from university and was now in charge of brand promotion. Coincidentally, she was also attending the pet industry forum the following day.

The two added each other on WeChat right away. Zhuang Yu'an's company specializes in pet supplies and toys and is developing pet food, so a pet hospital is a good partner.

Zhuang Yu'an parted ways with her after leaving the covered bridge, but unexpectedly ran into her again at the hotel reception desk. Yan Qing invited him out for a late-night snack, but he declined, citing a conference call.

"We came to Shanghai from Beijing to attend the same event, took the same flight, sat next to each other, and stayed in the same hotel..." Chen Quan sighed as he dragged his suitcase, "How could such a coincidence exist in the world!"

Zhuang Yu'an said "hmm" lightly. Chen Quan couldn't help laughing and said, "You are so destined to be together, why don't you go out for a drink?" Zhuang Yu'an glanced at him and said, "So you and her are destined to be together too, go ahead."

Standing by the French window, Zhuang Yu'an gazed out at the Huangpu River skyline and took a sip of whiskey. The cool alcohol flowed down his throat, its heat pouring into the cold pool, and the deep water began to boil. A question suddenly popped into his mind: What was she doing at this moment?

Should he be with Luffy?

Luffy owns several properties in Beijing. If he were him, he'd probably choose the quiet courtyard at the foot of the mountain, where he could hold her and watch the stars. When he was little, to please his sister, he memorized the positions and stories of the constellations so he could tell them to her. It didn't matter if she didn't like it; he'd hold her on his lap and do whatever she liked. It didn't matter if she liked to inflict wounds on men; he was hers from the inside out...

"Here's the watermelon!" Zhuang Jinghao brought the sliced ​​watermelon and placed it on the coffee table. He used a bamboo skewer to pick out a piece for Zuo Xiao, then picked up another piece and handed it to Chen Liqing. She looked up and observed him carefully: after not seeing him for half a month, he seemed a little haggard.

"Why hasn't your brother called to check on me yet?" Zuo Xiao took a bite of watermelon. "No, you wait here. Let's go upstairs and have a drink."

"Ah..." Zhuang Jinghao frowned, "I want to go with you guys... Oh, I can call them!"

I dialed the video call, but my brother didn't answer. I called again, but he hung up. A moment later, I got a WeChat message: "No video calls tonight. Good night."

"Yes!" Zhuang Jinghao jumped up from his chair, "Let's party!"

However, the expected happy party atmosphere did not ignite. Chen Liqing looked listless, and Zuo Xiao also looked uninspired, winking at her.

Zuo Xiao asked her to bring some wine and ice cubes, then poured a glass for Chen Liqing without saying a word, and he drank it down with his head tilted back.

Zhuang Jinghao finally understood: Chen Liqing was worried. Zuo Xiao had probably called him over to comfort him.

Realizing this, she felt a heavy weight on her heart.