15. Teasing the puppy

The sun was already high in the sky, and the light leaking through the gaps in the curtains was like a sword of judgment, pointing at Song Jiuchen, who was still fast asleep.

Having no recollection of what happened afterward, when he opened his eyes again, Song Jiuchen was lying on his small bed, his head aching and thirsty. Fortunately, there was a glass of water on the bedside table. Song Jiuchen drank it all in one gulp, but it didn't quench his thirst; it was better than nothing.

My body felt like it was crammed into a rusty mech, the joints creaking and grinding. My mouth was inhabited by some kind of decaying ecosystem; even my breath smelled of industrial wastewater. Last night's memories were fragmented, some pieces flashing back and causing a nausea in my stomach.

Song Jiuchen vowed never to drink again.

But a man's vows are often no different from a dog's bark.

I glanced at the time; it was already past 10 o'clock. Good heavens, how could someone cause such a disaster? This has ruined so many things. Ignoring my headache, I quickly jumped out of bed and rushed out the door.

However, Fang Shuning, who was sitting under the eaves of a house not far away, saw Song Jiuchen sneaking out.

It was a bit hot, and Fang Shuning held a large palm-leaf fan to fan herself, but beads of sweat still dripped down her face. She couldn't understand why she wasn't using air conditioning and instead insisted on waiting for Song Jiuchen to wake up. "Secretary Song~ You're awake? Are you still feeling unwell?"

Fang Shuning addresses Song Jiuchen in three ways: normally as Song Jiuchen, in serious matters as Secretary Song, and in informal matters as Little Secretary Song, with a slight trailing off at the end.

Fang Shuning's voice came from behind, and Song Jiuchen froze awkwardly, caught in a dilemma. Seeing Song Jiuchen standing there, Fang Shuning used a palm-leaf fan to shield her eyes from the sun, crossed the open courtyard, and came to Song Jiuchen's side. She continued to fan herself with the palm-leaf fan.

As the palm-leaf fan stirred, Fang Shuning's scent kept wafting into Song Jiuchen's nostrils. It wasn't perfume, but a fresh scent of shower gel that made his mind race and easily stirred up his fantasies.

Seeing Song Jiuchen in a daze, Fang Shuning waved a palm-leaf fan in front of him. "Hey, what are you thinking about? Are you stupid? Haven't you sobered up yet?" Song Jiuchen was particularly sensitive when he heard the word "alcohol" from Fang Shuning's mouth.

Because he couldn't recall what happened after he drank too much the night before. He wondered if he had done anything uncontrollable. There was a sense of disorientation, as if he had been careful and reserved for most of his life, only to have it all ruined by a single drink.

Then Song Jiuchen did the most outrageous thing he had ever done in his life while he was sober.

He grabbed Fang Shuning's hand, pulled her inside, and closed the door behind him. The room was quiet; Song Jiuchen felt like his heart was about to leap out of his chest.

"What's the purpose of Secretary Song pulling me in here? A lone man and a lone woman, tsk tsk." Fang Shuning said, looking around the room, which was completely exposed. She pointed with a palm-leaf fan at Song Jiuchen's unmade bed, "There isn't a very big bed here, and your little bed doesn't look very sturdy." Her tone was full of regret.

Song Jiuchen's face flushed red, as if he had drunk another two ounces of alcohol. He was completely unable to think straight. Fang Shuning was such a troublemaker.

Fortunately, Song Jiuchen quickly regained his composure. Taking a deep breath, he managed to speak, albeit with great difficulty, "I haven't drunk much alcohol before, I didn't expect my alcohol tolerance to be so low, I... I didn't make a fool of myself last night, did I?" He probed little by little.

Fang Shuning smiled wickedly, "Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

"Tell the truth..."

Fang Shuning suddenly took two steps forward, getting closer to Song Jiuchen. She stopped just before they were about to kiss. "Secretary Song, are you interested in me? You're drunk, and other people can't help you up, you have to let me. And you're looking at me like that, tsk~" Fang Shuning's words were light and casual, but to Song Jiuchen they felt like a mountain pressing down on him.

The sky has fallen! Secretary Song, the sky has fallen! Song Jiuchen felt a little pathetic and didn't know what to say in response to Fang Shuning.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door. "Song Jiuchen, are you up yet?" Without even listening to who was speaking outside, Song Jiuchen assumed it was a savior and quickly opened the door.

Unexpectedly, Cui Sitong and Xiaomin were standing outside the door.

Upon seeing Song Jiuchen and Fang Shuning standing inside the door, Cui Sitong paused for a moment. He quickly said to Xiaomin beside him, "Quick, take a picture of them."

Xiaomin was obedient and started snapping photos. Before Song Jiuchen could react, Xiaomin's shutter clicks stopped, and she switched to video recording mode.

Good child, really good child, quickly give Xiaomin a bonus.

Fang Shuning didn't seem to care at all, and even waved to the camera as she left. Song Jiuchen tried to remain calm and asked Cui Sitong what was wrong.

Cui Sitong had no choice but to come to his senses and get down to business.

Xiaomin went out early this morning to gather material, and in just one morning, she had already explored almost the entire surrounding area. The footage has already been sent back to the studio. Now, Cui Sitong needs to understand the current development status of Xitang Village. He'll ask Song Jiuchen if it's convenient to have a video conference with her studio team to discuss the situation. This will help them better determine the shooting direction and scriptwriting.

Song Jiuchen quickly said it was convenient and asked them to sit in the village committee's meeting room for a while, and that he would come over right away.

Cui Sitong asked Fang Shuning if she wanted to come along.

She waved her hand in refusal, saying that she couldn't help much anyway, and that she might as well go home and enjoy the air conditioning.

Cui Sitong scoffed. "If you're going to say you'd rather go home and enjoy the air conditioning, then what are you doing here so early in the morning? Did you really come to ask Song Jiuchen if he likes her? And you even came out of someone else's room! Fang Shuning, your intentions aren't pure." But let's get down to business first. We'll question him properly after we're done.

Song Jiuchen and Cui Si went off to attend to important business. Fang Shuning returned home. Only when she turned on the air conditioner and lay in bed did Fang Shuning truly feel alive.

Fang Shuning couldn't help but exclaim that air conditioning truly is the greatest invention in human history. Let us all thank Willie Haviland Carrier.

She went to bed late and got up early, wanting to go back to sleep, but she tossed and turned in bed and couldn't fall asleep. Fang Shuning didn't know why she was waiting for Song Jiuchen at the door so early in the morning. Was she really trying to find out if Song Jiuchen liked her? It was all so inexplicable.

But after teasing Song Jiuchen, Fang Shuning felt a kind of pleasure, like teasing a puppy.

I'm quite happy.

Just be happy, there's no need to keep trying to figure out why. Grandma always said, "There aren't that many 'whys' in life." Let him like it or not; it's perfectly normal for a pretty person to be liked.

It's not that you should be worried about not being liked.

At first, after drinking too much, Song Jiuchen sat obediently, tilting his head and listening to the three of them chattering. But as he listened, Song Jiuchen suddenly felt something was wrong, because he couldn't understand what they were saying anymore. A strange taste of strong alcohol rose in his stomach. Feeling nauseous, Song Jiuchen abruptly sat up, looking for a place to vomit. He remembered there was a trash can in the corner.

But why is the wall moving?

Liu Yi, who was closest, quickly stood up and helped the swaying Song Jiuchen. Through his blurry, drunken eyes, Song Jiuchen recognized the person as Fang Shuning and shook off Liu Yi's hand.

Liu Yi: ?

Then he stumbled, but Fang Shuning reacted quickly and caught Song Jiuchen, preventing him from falling to the ground. It took Fang Shuning a lot of effort.

After Song Jiuchen recognized Fang Shuning, he tightly grasped the hand that was supporting him.

No, what does he mean? Huh? What does this guy mean? Liu Yi put his hands on his hips, really wanting to slap Song Jiuchen across the face.

After vomiting, Song Jiuchen leaned against the wall and sat down on the ground. He was not fully conscious and just kept grinning foolishly at Song Shuning, who was squatting in front of him. Fang Shuning looked up at Cui Sitong and Liu Yi standing to the side and said, "Do you think this guy likes me? Otherwise, why is he always staring at me like that?"

Cui Sitong rolled his eyes. "You don't actually think you're a heartthrob, do you?"

Liu Yi did sense something, but without confirmation from the person involved, he didn't say much and didn't respond to Fang Shuning's words.

Fang Shuning looked down at Song Jiuchen again, no longer grinning foolishly, because he was asleep. Now closer, Fang Shuning could examine him more closely. He had rather long eyelashes, a high nose bridge, and lips that looked very kissable. His tanned skin and physique were also quite good… Cui Sitong couldn't stand Fang Shuning admiring a man at this moment, and patted her shoulder, “Stop swooning, lawyer. Think about how to get him back to rest.”

Although Song Jiuchen wasn't heavy, a drunk person was like a lump of mud, and it was impossible to handle without great strength.

Liu Yi returned after throwing out the trash, with someone following behind him. "I ran into Uncle Cui on his way to the fields when I went to throw out the trash, so I thought I'd ask him to get Song Jiuchen into the room. Otherwise, even if the few of us worked ourselves to the bone, we might not be able to get him in."

Fang Shuning and Cui Sitong greeted Uncle Cui. Although the village follows a seniority system, in their Cui family, Uncle Cui had to call Cui Sitong his cousin.

Uncle Cui responded with a laugh, "How much did Secretary Song drink to get to this state?"

Cui Sitong silently raised one finger, "A jin? Why is this kid drinking so much?"

"No, it's a cup."

Uncle Cui fell silent.

People who work hard often have energy. Uncle Cui quickly carried Song Jiuchen back to bed.

The video conference lasted quite a while, and by the time it ended, it was past lunchtime. The studio team said they would have the first draft of the shooting plan by tonight at the latest. Secretary Song couldn't help but sigh, "Professionals really do have to be efficient. What incredible good deeds I must have done in my past life to have such good fortune in this one."

Song Jiuchen waved his hand and said he would treat Cui Sitong and Xiaomin to dinner. Then they went to a noodle shop on the street.