If not for the cold and uncomfortable sensation of his wet sleeve sticking to his skin, He Juan would have thought that he was dreaming. Mu Yuze made him a cup of coffee? For him? Did the sun rise from the west today??

He had the urge to pinch himself, just to make sure that he was not in some kind of ultra realistic dream, but he soon discarded the thought once he found Mu Yuze sneaking glances at him, looking increasingly nervous by each passing second. What did he– oh, he must be waiting for He Juan’s response.

Why was his mind so slow and sluggish today? It must be because he had not had his daily coffee yet, he reasoned.

Strangely nervous, He Juan moved to the counter and grabbed the glass, sensing that the temperature was just right for him to drink. Still kinda disoriented by the fact that this was a precious cup of coffee Mu Yuze had personally brewed for him, he brought the cup to his lips, took a sip and—

Gah! So... so bitter!

As expected, He Juan and coffee were two entities that could not coexist peacefully in this lifetime. He could sense that this coffee was much more flavorful and aromatic than anything he could have ever made, but... that’s it! For him, it was still a cup of black, repulsive and disgusting liquid that shortened his lifespan with every sip he took!

He almost pulled out his tongue and retched when he abruptly recalled that Mu Yuze was still looking at him. No, He Juan could not show the contempt on his face. He must not wound Mu Yuze’s pride after the boy went out of his way to make him this cup of damned coffee!

As such, no matter how horrible his nausea was, He Juan forced himself to gulp everything down and gave Mu Yuze a bright smile through the tears pooling on the corner of his eyes. "Xiao Ze... that’s excellent! How can you manage to brew such good coffee? Wow... it’s even better than the ones sold in coffee shops!" He blew out rainbow farts like they were air – anything to make Mu Yuze happy.

However, the reaction He Juan got was utterly unexpected.

The boy fixed him with an intense stare, and one second before He Juan’s smile collapsed, he abruptly turned his head to the side. "...pfft."

He Juan: "..."

"Did you..." he sputtered out in shock and disbelief. "Did you just laugh at me?"

"...Am not." Mu Yuze cleared his throat and turned to look at him again. He would have looked more convincing if not for the corner of his lips that kept trembling as he tried to reign in his laughter. "You... don’t need to pretend like that. I know that you don’t like drinking coffee."

"You knew?!" He Juan gaped at him. Oh God, exactly how much had Mu Yuze witnessed that day? Did He Juan still have a sliver of image and dignity left in his eyes?!

Mu Yuze nodded, a faint crimson hue suffused into his neck due to the restrained laughter. His black-blue eyes were twinkling like rare, precious jewels under the bath of moonlight. "You have a sweet tooth, so I guess that you don’t like to drink anything bitter. Mr. Chen told me that you’d only drink coffee when you woke up, and I found no sugar or milk in the kitchen. So..." the corner of his eyes tilted ever so slightly into an extremely smug smile. "Do you drink coffee because it’s the only way not to be sleepy in the morning?"

When Mu Yuze put it like that, it seemed so embarrassing for him, a big and reliable Alpha, to force himself to consume something he hated everyday just for an energy boost. But right now, He Juan could not find it in himself to be ashamed because he was totally awed by Mu Yuze’s concise and systematic analysis. He had noticed the boy’s sharp observational ability early on, but this was already on a whole different level! How many days had he been living here again? And how much did he know about He Juan? To be able to draw such an accurate conclusion...

"Wow..." He Juan exclaimed softly, almost breathless. He would have given the boy an applause if he could use both of his hands. "Xiao Ze, that’s... awesome. You’re spot on. Brilliant. You’re a genius!"

Mu Yuze’s face reddened, flustered by the barrage of compliments thrown his way. "T–That’s..."

He Juan could spot a rough and unpolished diamond when he saw it, and the boy in front of him was such an example. He had a raw talent in him, and if it was trained...

A chuckle escaped He Juan’s lips as he promptly shelved the idea to the graveyard of his mind. No, he had made a vow with himself. He would never involve Mu Yuze in his world. "I am not exaggerating," he said in a matter-of-fact tone. "You’re very talented, Xiao Ze. You could be an excellent police officer!"

"Police?" Mu Yuze wrinkled his nose as if he had heard something repulsive. Cute, He Juan thought. "What’s the use of them?"

This time, He Juan laughed for real. Even a child like Mu Yuze knew how weak the authority of law enforcers nowadays. It proved how corrupted and twisted the country had become. "Well, Gege will not lie to you. They’re indeed kinda useless now. But what about two, five or ten years later? By then, no one will know how..." He Juan placed his dirty glass on the sink and moved to open the top cabinet, only to find nothing but empty space. He blinked, dumbfounded.

W–Where were his precious sugar cubes?!!

"About that..." Mu Yuze cleared his throat and told him gingerly, a hint of amusement in his tone. "I forgot to tell you. Your sugar cubes... they’re thrown away by Mr. Chen..."

Chen Youzhi... I will remember this...

He Juan smiled darkly and closed the cabinet. Without a pause, he opened the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of milk tea, gulping down two large mouthfuls to waste away the lingering bitterness in his tongue. Only then could he breathe a sigh of relief.

"You are not angry...?" Mu Yuze asked as he observed He Juan’s reaction.

"Angry?" He Juan gasped in surprise as if the one who had decided to settle grudges with Chen Youzhi a moment ago was not him. "Why should I be angry just because of something like this? Xiao Ze, Gege is not such a petty person, okay?"

"Hmm..." Mu Yuze shot him a skeptical look, unsure.

He Juan was certain, the boy was going to be the death of him someday.

During the short few seconds He Juan spent drinking his milk tea, Mu Yuze had moved to wash his glass, placed it in the drying rack, then wiped the spilled water on the floor. He was fast and agile. For a brief moment, He Juan entertained the thought of teaching the boy some self-defense skills. Perhaps he should do that after Mu Yuze had put on some weight on his body...

"Ah, that’s right. We have an appointment with Doctor Jia this morning, right?" He Juan reminded him. "Have you washed up yet? We will go to the clinic together and after that, Gege will buy you breakfast and drive you to school, okay? What time does your class start?"

"Eight-thirty," Mu Yuze answered readily, sending a spark of joy all over He Juan’s chest. As expected, something was really different about Mu Yuze today. How to describe it? It was like... he was starting to retract his sharp edges for He Juan to come close.

And nothing could make him happier than that. It was literally the highlight of his week!

"Okay," He Juan reached out to ruffle his fluffy hair, grinning. "Go and get ready. We will leave in fifteen minutes."