Qin Mu had never taken the initiative to bring up Shen Liu. That youthful relationship was, to him, like a long-festering injury that had damaged tendon and bone—an old illness that still ached faintly to this day. These friends had known one another for many years and understood each other’s boundaries; since he did not wish to speak of it, they did not ask. They only vaguely knew that ‘he once had a lover, and later they broke up’. The only one who likely understood the truth was Chu Yu. And even he had not heard it from Qin Mu, but had sensed it from the other end instead. As the most powerful local figure in K City, nothing that happened on this land could escape his notice; even if Shen Liu acted from afar, it would have been impossible to evade his ears and eyes. Why would Shen Liu, one of the most influential and ruthless among the younger generation of the illustrious Shen family, repeatedly cast his gaze on a completely ordinary lawyer living thousands of miles away? A simple inquiry would reveal the connection between the two. Chu Yu saw through it but did not expose it. He did not hinder Shen Liu in any way, tacitly permitting everything he did in K City. He was a smart man who knew how to assess the situation and who understood the importance of preparing for the future. Since the Old Master Chu’s generation, the Chu family had ridden on the coattails of the Shi family. The Shi family once wielded dazzling power, but internal strife among its heirs led to a decline in its strength, and its influence had fallen to the bottom among the Four Great Families, leaving it with no choice but to cling to the Zhao family. By quietly extending Shen Liu some courtesy, Chu Yu established a connection with the Shen family. And later, during the fierce political battle between the Shen and Zhao factions, he seized the moment and joined forces with the Shi family’s widow, Shen Jiahe, to fully push the Shi family into defecting. Facts proved that he had chosen correctly. Today, Golden Eagle Group has already become one of the Shen family’s footholds in Jiangnan—its position secure and its influence unparalleled. Now that the overall situation was settled, Shen Liu was finally free to step away, and the first thing he did was fly to K City. Chu Yu could guess his purpose and brought him directly to the East Coast. The few people present all scrutinised the newcomer with curious eyes. Everyone knew that the East Coast had extremely strict standards for admitting members, requiring multiple layers of review and final approval by collective signatures from upper management. Only a few veteran investors had the authority to grant direct admission. Back then, in order to sneak Zhuo Yue in without Fang Mingyan noticing, Xu Ye had pestered Chu Yu for ages. Yet this Mr. Shen had been personally brought here by Chu Yu and taken straight to meet them. Combined with the Chu family’s recent moves and that sensitive surname, Fang Mingyan and Xu Ye could more or less guess something. Others in the hall were also glancing over. Even putting aside his background, Shen Liu himself was striking enough. Broad shoulders, narrow hips, long legs, and matched with that face—he could easily stir desire in a place as hedonistic as this. Gazes drifted toward him from all directions, sticking lightly to his body. People speculated about his identity while imagining what he would look like once he stepped into the role—someone like him, whether holding a riding crop or kneeling naked on the ground, seemed delicious either way. Shen Liu ignored all those desire-filled looks, greeting them calmly with a composed smile. “Hello, everyone.” After they sat down, Chu Yu introduced him one by one. When he reached Qin Mu, he paused. “I suppose there’s no need for me to say more about this one.” Shen Liu curved his lips. “Lawyer Qin, long time no see.” After a slight pause, he added, “Should I be calling you—Mr. Pharaoh—while we’re here?” Qin Mu had already recovered from his earlier shock, regaining his mountain-like stillness. This scene was painfully familiar. The person he had thought he would never see again was now standing right before him. The thread he believed had long been severed was suddenly tied together once more. What could not be cut cleanly only tangled further; what could not be explained only grew messier; what he could not escape was once again inescapable. Truly, a fated misfortune. He gave a silent, bitter laugh in his heart. This was a public setting, with friends beside him; he could not abruptly get up and walk away. No doubt Shen Liu had calculated that, which was why he chose to appear in this manner. The few seconds their gazes met felt like a silent, hidden confrontation. Qin Mu kept the accusation in his heart, ‘You promised with your own mouth that we would never meet again, so why break your word now?’, and answered with restrained distance, “It’s just a form of address, nothing more. It doesn’t matter.” Shen Liu swept his eyes toward the man kneeling at Qin Mu’s feet and asked, “And this is?” “My slave.” The reply was concise, to the point of sounding stiff, and carried a defensive posture. “Well-trained.” Shen Liu praised with a smile, all gentle harmlessness on the surface. “You flatter me.” One probed, the other defended. In that brief exchange, an undercurrent of subtle tension rippled. Everyone present was astute enough to catch the unusual details. Xu Ye, unable to hold back his curiosity, shot Chu Yu a questioning look and received a faint, knowing smile in return. *Tsk, these two are definitely up to something. Xu Ye’s eyes lit up as he arched his brows at Zhuo Yue. Zhuo Yue received the signal and, without batting an eye, lightly scratched at Fang Mingyan’s palm. Fang Mingyan curled his lips and threw a look at Xia Ran. Xia Ran nudged Sima Jun beside him with his leg. A silent spark of gossip quietly ignited and spread through the entire seating area, and everyone sat there with great interest, ready to watch the situation unfold. It was understandable that they were curious; after all, it wasn’t every day that there was something to gossip about when it came to Qin Mu. After all these years of circling around, the few of them had all paired off, leaving only this ‘Pharaoh’ to move through the world alone. He didn’t enjoy socialising; most of the people around him were work colleagues. Though he was in the scene, he rarely took subs, and the few he interacted with for longer never developed into anything emotional. When Fang Mingyan introduced Lu Cheng to him, he originally thought Lu Cheng’s persistence might eventually win him over, but Qin Mu treated him entirely like a client—aside from their routine, clockwork Friday sessions, where Qin Mu provided the scheduled service and sharpened his technical skills in the process, they had no private contact at all. Fang Mingyan joked that Qin Mu was like a Bodhisattva untouched by mortal desire, and only a fox spirit who had cultivated for a thousand years might be able to enchant him. As for this Mr. Shen in front of them… his looks were close enough to that description, but no one knew how deep his cultivation ran, or whether he could actually charm this block of ice. “You two know each other?” Xu Ye, who always loved to be on the front lines of eating melon1to gossip, asked eagerly. “We’ve known each other for a long time,” Shen Liu answered. “Then…” A sudden series of electronic chimes cut off Xu Ye’s questioning. East Coast had just been renovated last year, and four large electronic screens had been installed at the central ceiling of the main hall, each facing a different direction. They were used to display member information and provide multi-angle live streams of stage performances and classes. At this moment, all four screens simultaneously flashed the routine welcome animation for new members—at the centre of an interwoven rope-knot appeared several conspicuous characters: [Welcome, new member ‘Sphinx.’] Sphinx, the monster of ancient Egyptian mythology. Its most famous image was the Great Sphinx beside the Pyramid of Khafre—ancient, origins obscure, weather-worn and broken, yet still standing. It was said to be the Pharaoh’s guardian, protecting his slumbering soul for lifetime after lifetime. Others might not understand the specific meaning behind this name, but the people on the sofa certainly did. They all revealed expressions full of layered meaning. Qin Mu sat calmly. From the moment he saw Shen Liu, he knew this man would definitely create trouble, so he had been mentally prepared and wasn’t particularly surprised. After the welcome words came the newcomer’s profile display; the East Coast had plenty of oddballs, but this Sphinx managed to stand out with a style entirely his own. He had chosen sub as his role, yet every single field was marked ‘Not accepted’. Only the final remarks section contained one line: ‘If the other party is Mr. Pharaoh, all above conditions may be changed.’ The connection in their names could still be loosely explained as a coincidence, but this profile was blatantly announcing to everyone exactly who he had come for—so high-profile it was practically outrageous. Unrequited crushes from subs toward doms were common in the club, but no one ever went this far. This was the equivalent of placing oneself at the edge of a cliff with no retreat. If he were rejected, it would be nearly impossible to find another dom. Competent doms were already scarce, and they often possessed strong personalities and possessiveness; almost none would choose a sub who openly has someone else in their heart. A wave of murmurs swept through the hall. The members’ gazes toward them now carried traces of sympathy. Everyone in the scene knew that Pharaoh was not someone who could be won over with mere affection and courage. They all sat back, ready to watch this reckless newcomer crash into a wall and end up covered in metaphorical bruises. Shen Liu didn’t care what anyone thought. Neither did Qin Mu. At this moment, the VIP section felt like the eye of a storm amid the howling winds and rain—unnaturally calm. The two men at the centre of the commotion sat facing each other, their gazes locking across the space. After a moment of silence, Qin Mu spoke. “You saw it. I have a sub.” Shen Liu replied unhurriedly, “That isn’t important.” Lu Cheng’s eyelid twitched. His fists tightened. From the moment he learned Shen Liu had come specifically for Qin Mu, a suffocating sense of threat had pressed down on him. And this near-dismissive attitude completely infuriated him. He couldn’t stop himself from turning toward Shen Liu and glaring sharply, “What do you mean by that?” When acting in the role of a slave, speaking to others without the master’s permission was an extremely low-level mistake. Qin Mu frowned slightly and tapped the sofa armrest with a bent finger in warning. Realising he had fallen into a trap, Lu Cheng felt both angry and ashamed. His face flushed red as he acknowledged his mistake, “I was wrong, Master.” Shen Liu smiled with an effortlessly composed expression and added insult to the injury, “At least when it comes to following rules, I think I can do better than him.” “I have no intention of taking on another sub for the time being,” Qin Mu rejected. “Does he satisfy you?” Shen Liu asked. The bluntness of the question caught Qin Mu off guard. He froze for a moment. “Do you desire him?” Shen Liu looked deeply at him, unblinking. “Or rather—do you feel any pleasure when you train him?” This was an intensely private matter. Outsiders didn’t know, but Lu Cheng knew very well. His expression turned extremely ugly as he clenched his teeth. The onlookers hadn’t expected Shen Liu to drop such a bomb suddenly, and the atmosphere instantly grew awkward. But it was too late to leave now, and it wasn’t the right time to interrupt, so they had no choice but to sit still, eyes lowered, pretending to contemplate their noses and hearts. “These things have nothing to do with you,” Qin Mu replied calmly. “You asked to establish a relationship with me, and I have clearly refused. That is enough.” He really wasn’t giving him a chance. Even though Shen Liu had expected this outcome, he still felt a faint ache in his chest. He let out a helpless laugh. “All right.” Just then, a staff member hurried over and handed Lu Cheng a black envelope. To protect the venue’s privacy, phones and other electronic devices were not allowed inside the club. If there were an urgent matter, the front desk would send a server in with a message. After reading it, Lu Cheng’s brows tightened. He leaned toward Qin Mu and whispered, “Master, something happened at home. I must go back right now.” Qin Mu nodded and unfastened the collar around his neck. Lu Cheng stood up quickly, shot Shen Liu a fierce glare, and strode away. Shen Liu gave a small amused curl of his lips, but the moment his peripheral vision caught Qin Mu’s gaze, his heartbeat instantly faltered. Qin Mu’s gaze was cold, as if frozen. He had misunderstood. He thought Shen Liu had done something to Lu Cheng, forcing him to leave. Shen Liu opened his mouth to explain that the matter had nothing to do with him, but swallowed the words again. The timing was far too coincidental; even he wouldn’t believe it if the situation were reversed. And besides, he had a long list of similar incidents in his past—he was practically a repeat offender. Qin Mu’s misunderstanding of him wasn’t entirely unjust. Shen Liu sighed silently in his heart and simply looked at him without a word. “Since you’re so eager to be my sub, I’ll indulge you once.” Qin Mu toyed with the collar in his hand, his voice low and cool. “Take off your clothes and come kneel.”
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