Isn't This a Contract Marriage? Why Are You Sneaking Kisses! - Chapter 1

【Unchanged Cover Note: It’s normal for purchased character templates to overlap; the author only has usage rights.】

Inside the KTV private lounge, smoke swirled through the air. Music played on the screen, and under the dim, hazy lights, the atmosphere was flirtatiously hypnotic.

Surrounded at the very center was Ji Yunshen, leaning back against the sofa. The sharp, cold lines of his features sketched out a face of a dissolute playboy.

Ji Yunshen had one hand draped over his leg while the other held a glass of strong liquor. He tilted his head back, draining it in one gulp, his Adam’s apple bobbing with the swallow. His messy hair fell over his forehead as he laughed and chatted with those around him, appearing casual and unrestrained.

“How to become hysterical.” “Blaming myself for being indecisive.” “Closing my eyes to escape again and again.”

The air was thick with the mixed scent of tobacco and alcohol; the entire space felt sweltering and restless.

Sitting in the corner, a young man kept his head slightly lowered. Strands of hair hid most of his face. He had a thin, bony back, and the tailored cut of his clothes accentuated his slender waist.

The surrounding smoke made him uncomfortable; he panted softly to catch his breath, the side of his face flushed a deep red.

On the other side of the lounge, a red-haired man chatting with the group couldn’t stop his gaze from drifting toward that corner, even as his friends nudged him repeatedly to snap him out of it.

Ji Yunshen, currently drinking, sensed something was off. He turned his head slightly and caught the scene.

His expression chilled. A cryptic smile curled at the corners of his lips as he tapped his fingers against his glass.

“Silie,” he called out softly.

The person in the corner didn’t respond.

“Shen Silie,” Ji Yunshen raised his voice.

The youth in the corner moved. Finally hearing the call over the music, he tilted his head, revealing the face previously hidden beneath his hair.

Shen Silie lifted his eyelashes slightly. Damp strands of hair scattered across his forehead, and three tiny black moles beneath his right eye looked exceptionally unique.

Unlike the brown irises most East Asians possess, his eyes were clearer, tinged with a faint golden yellow—like syrup made of honey, swirling with an indelible weariness.

Amidst the swirling smoke, his features were misty and indistinct.

Yet, one could still see that his features were stunningly beautiful, though not aggressive. It was a beauty rooted in gentleness—neither too distant nor too intense.

Mellow, soft, caught between innocence and maturity; contradictory and captivating.

The others in the lounge shifted their gazes, instinctively avoiding the youth’s eyes.

Ji Yunshen glanced at the red-headed man who was still staring, the displeasure in his eyes deepening. He beckoned to Shen Silie. “Come here.”

The smoke continued to drift.

Shen Silie frowned slightly, waving away the smoke near him as he stood up and walked over. The people surrounding Ji Yunshen quickly made room for him.

Shen Silie sat down beside Ji Yunshen.

The lounge was far too hot. Frowning, he habitually unbuttoned the top button of his shirt. As he moved, two strange red crescent-shaped birthmarks—one on his left wrist and one on the back of his neck—were briefly exposed.

“Why did you go so far away?” Ji Yunshen asked with a smile. He uncrossed his legs and leaned in close.

His arm draped over Shen Silie’s shoulder.

Ji Yunshen raised his hand, his fingertips familiarly weaving through the youth’s hair, letting the soft strands slip through his fingers.

It was an action heavy with suggestion.

The red-haired man bit his lip, looked away, and took two large gulps of his drink.

Shen Silie’s breath hitched. His drowsiness vanished instantly. The itch on his scalp sent a shiver through him, and he instinctively raised his hand to pull away.

But Ji Yunshen had timed it perfectly. He slowly let go, narrowing his eyes with a mischievous smirk.

The gazes of everyone in the room swept over them, intentionally or otherwise. A strange tension suddenly blanketed the lounge.

Shen Silie lowered his head self-consciously. He placed a pre-prepared birthday gift by the man’s hand and said, “You guys keep playing. I have something to take care of.”

With that, Shen Silie stood up to leave.

Suddenly, his wrist was grabbed firmly from behind. He leaned back, nearly falling.

Ji Yunshen gripped his wrist with one hand and steadied his body with the other. He teased in a voice that wasn’t lowered at all, “Don’t go falling into my arms now.”

Shen Silie froze. His heart raced, and the tips of his ears turned bright red.

A faint, warm scent of orange blossoms lingered at the tip of his nose.

Ji Yunshen leaned in further, his body almost pressed against the youth’s.

Shen Silie’s body went taut; he stood there paralyzed.

Ji Yunshen’s eyes crinkled with laughter. He took his own heavy coat and draped it over Shen Silie’s shoulders, even carefully doing up the buttons.

“Call me when you get home,” Ji Yunshen instructed warmly.

Shen Silie lowered his reddened eyes, his entire face flushed through.

Not daring to look at anyone else in the room and forgetting his own jacket, he turned and left without looking back.

His heartbeat accelerated into a chaotic rhythm with every step.

It took a while to navigate out of the KTV.

Once outside, Shen Silie crouched down, resting his head against the roadside railing. He gasped for air, the flush on his face fading quickly in the cold wind, followed by a violent fit of coughing.

Due to a congenital deficiency, his lungs and trachea had been weak since childhood. Every time he caught a cold or the seasons changed, he would cough for half a month.

If it weren’t for Ji Yunshen’s birthday, he never would have come to a place where he knew there would be smoke.

The hem of the coat trailed on the ground.

Shen Silie tugged at the slightly oversized sleeves, only then realizing he was wearing Ji Yunshen’s coat while his own was still back in the lounge.

He froze, hesitating for a moment.

Slowly, he curled into himself, burying his head into the fabric of the coat.

In an instant, a familiar aura enveloped him—a faint scent of tobacco mixed with an aquatic cologne.

It felt as if he were being held in the arms of the coat’s owner.

Clutching the sleeves, Shen Silie’s heart began to race uncontrollably, and a flicker of deep emotion rose in his eyes.

That affection remained active for only a few seconds.

Shen Silie closed his eyes and stood up, suppressing the thoughts he shouldn’t have. His forehead was wet with cold sweat, and as the winter wind blew, he felt an itch in his throat. He couldn’t help but cough again. When the itch finally subsided, his abdomen ached from the strain.

He frowned, leaning against the railing to recover.

He pulled his phone from his pocket, about to book a ride, when his fingertips brushed against a piece of soft fabric. Shen Silie suddenly realized that in his rush to escape, he hadn’t given the gift.

He rubbed his eyes and checked the time. Only nine minutes left before the next day.

He cursed himself for being an idiot.

He looked at the sachet with hesitation, remembering what the woman by the river had said: If you give this sachet on their birthday, you can be together forever.

Whether as…

Or just as friends…

Even if it was just a delusion, he wanted to have many more years with him.

Shen Silie turned and hurried back into the KTV. Perhaps because he was in such a rush, or perhaps because his brain was scrambled, he couldn’t remember which room it was. After several wrong turns, he finally found a door.

He stood before it and knocked twice.

There was no sound.

Just as he was about to knock again, the door was pulled open from the inside.

At that moment, from somewhere unknown, came the sound of clinking keys and the crackle of a burning flame. Amidst a woman’s sigh, his consciousness flickered for three seconds.

His nose was filled with a scent of agarwood—quiet and deep, as if from the River Styx—but it vanished as quickly as it came, replaced by the scent of masculine hormones.

Shen Silie looked up.

A tall figure instantly dominated his vision.

His knocking hand stopped mid-air, and the words he was about to say died in his throat.

The man before him was exceptionally tall, easily over 190 cm. He held a freshly lit cigar. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, revealing sturdy forearms and an exquisite wristwatch.

He wore a wine-red shirt with the collar slightly open. He clearly exercised regularly; his shoulders were broad and his waist narrow. Just standing there, he exuded an overwhelming pressure.

Looking up, the man had handsome features and a superior bone structure. His expression was indifferent, and under the dim lights, his irises looked like precious green emeralds.

Shen Silie blinked, his fingertips trembling slightly.

So tall…

Is he a foreigner?

Shang Jichen looked down at Shen Silie, his Adam’s apple moving. Standing outside the lounge where he was alone, Shang Jichen asked the first question.

“Who are you looking for?”

His hoarse voice carried a hint of weariness. A scent of smoky wood mixed with brandy wafted toward Shen Silie.

Their gazes met under the ambiguous lighting.

Shang Jichen’s eyes were like a dark green abyss—cold and distant—yet a single look felt like being pulled into the depths.

Shen Silie took a step back.

“Sorry, I have the wrong room.”

Not daring to look further, he apologized and, without waiting for the man to speak, turned and fled, mindful of the little time he had left.

The man’s gaze followed the youth’s back for a long time until the figure disappeared at the end of the hallway.

Shang Jichen slowly retracted his gaze and closed the door.

Clink—

Glass hit glass with a crisp sound.

Inside the other room, Ji Yunshen was laughing uproariously at something someone had said. The sound even leaked through the slight crack in the door.

Shen Silie breathed a sigh of relief. His hand touched the handle, planning to use the excuse of picking up his jacket to finally give the sachet.

“Brother Shen, that kid’s feelings for you are so obvious. Don’t tell me you still haven’t realized it?”

Shen Silie’s hand froze. His heart skipped a beat.