Time ticked away, gradually returning to tranquility. The tirelessly buzzing phone, left abandoned on the ground, finally received its master's attention.

"Mr. Ye, regarding your evening meeting--"

It's been ten minutes already.

"Postpone it until tomorrow. I have already made revisions to the details of our collaborative project. I will email them to you so that you can consolidate them into the final version."

Secretary Lisa hesitated for a moment, then responded, "Alright, President Ye."

She has been working at the company for two years and has never witnessed Ye Jindu being late for a meeting. This young boss is ambitious and responsible, meticulous in his work, and commanding yet approachable with his subordinates. However, he is still a 25-year-old young person and may have occasional moments of laxity.

Ye Jindu maintained the posture of holding the shizheng, and pulled the towel on Omega's fair shoulders. The other party appeared to be sleeping relaxedly and without any guard, yet their hand securely grasped his belt, as if ready to flee or turn hostile at any moment.

Even though they were not acquainted, one could tell from their subtle actions that this person likely had psychological issues. For example, when engaging in intimate activities, they remained silent and dared not touch the other person. Even if their movements became forceful, they only made low humming sounds. Clearly, they were afraid, yet they compelled themselves to appear generous. Even during moments of passion, they carried a sense of guilt and apologized to their partner. They exhibited both attachment and wariness towards intimate acts, and this conflicting personality was greatly influenced by their upbringing in their family of origin.

Ye Jindu shook his head and stopped the speculation. He carefully pulled out the belt, and Omega's closed eyelashes moved. Ye Jindu looked at him carefully and found that he hadn't been awakened. He then placed the other person on the swing chair, curled up on top of it like a snail, looking strangely cute. Ye Jindu couldn't help but look at him a bit more, and his eyes fell upon the messy bed sheets and quilt. His heart suddenly felt suffocated – how could he distance himself from this? He had already ended up on the bed, so how could he not take responsibility? He, Ye Jindu, was not the kind of person who casually slept with others. How did he suddenly become so impulsive, going at it again and again? It was puzzling, truly puzzling. Whether it was a sense of responsibility or selfishness, Ye Jindu couldn't bear to ask himself. Anyway, what's done is done. The first thing he would do when the other person woke up was to take him for a physical examination.

Shizheng hasn't dreamt of his parents for a long time. In his dream, he became a teenager and was by a puddle next to a pile of demolished ruins with his younger brother. They were catching tadpoles with plastic bottles. The ground that had experienced rain was damp and soft, with small puddles scattered around. The puddles were filled with many small black tadpoles. With just a single scoop of the plastic bottle, Shizheng could catch a handful of them. Holding the plastic bottle in one hand and his brother's hand in the other, Shizheng led his brother home. His brother, being small and short-legged, struggled to keep up, taking a few steps then running a few. He was as adorable as a little duckling. Shizheng led him to the front door and could hear his parents arguing from within a few dilapidated small houses that remained amidst the demolished ones. From beneath an electrical pole, Shizheng pulled his brother, watching as his father overturned a table and his mother threw a pot on the ground, shattering plates. There were also spinach leaves scattered on the floor.

Shizheng felt the soft touch of her younger brother's hand in her own, but at this moment, it tightened anxiously.

"Big brother..."

"It's his younger brother calling out to him."

Shizheng tightened her hold on her little brother's hand and said, "Let's go catch some tadpoles again..."

He led his younger brother around several houses until they were far away from the vulgar insults and curses, like a devilish figure twirling in the gray sky. How they longed to leave this place, to have a good meal, and to have a warm and peaceful family.

Nightmares always wake people up in an instant, as if the mind refuses to endure another round of trauma and activates its self-protection mechanism to awaken.

Shi Zheng's entire body trembled, opening her eyes. In the dimly lit room, she thought she had gone back in time until she felt the soft bedding beneath her. The young him could never afford such a luxurious down quilt.

At that time, he did not understand how wonderful money could be.

"If he didn't have money, how could he afford to live in a high-end residence, wear expensive and comfortable clothes, and have a peaceful sleep without worrying about being dragged into meaningless quarrels in the middle of the night?"

Now he understood.